Fathers Be Good To Your Daughters
by protejerinnocencia
Summary: Sequel to Time With My Father.  Five years have passed since the girls received their powers.  Can they handle their Charmed duties with the trials and tribulations of their teenage years?
1. Growing Pains

_Growing Pains_

The sun rose above the tree line, casting a warm glow into the windows of the upper floor of the Halliwell Manor. It was a calm mid October morning and Prue was sitting cross legged beneath the sheets. She'd woken up a half hour ago and couldn't fall back to sleep. She held a photograph of her mother in her hands, tracing the delicate swirl of her hair as it gently framed her face. She couldn't help but think back to that day they'd finally seen her as a ghost. That had been five years ago. Had they really been witches for five years? Had Victor really been back in their lives for that long? As these thoughts continued to spin around in the fifteen-year-old girl's mind, there was a knock on the door.

"It's open," she called, not taking her eyes off the picture. The door creaked open and Victor walked in.

"You're up early," he commented, sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Couldn't fall back to sleep," she answered, looking up to meet his gaze. Victor just nodded. He knew he shouldn't interrupt any of the girls when they were thinking. For all he knew they were devising some new spell or something.

"What are you thinking about?' he finally asked. Prue sighed and placed the picture back on the night stand beside her.

"Mom…Grams…all that's happened in the last five years. I mean it's been that long since Grams died and we got our powers," she rambled.

"That's a hell of a lot to be thinking about at…seven in the morning," Victor mused.

"I guess it is," Prue agreed. Just then there were stampeding feet and a slam of the door.

"Phoebe, get out of the bathroom!" Piper bellowed. Prue couldn't help but smile a little. Puberty was definitely interesting in this household.

"No," Phoebe replied, her voice sounding a bit shaky. Piper tugged on the doorknob to find it closed. Prue climbed from beneath the covers and went to join her thirteen-year-old sister.

"Let me try," Prue whispered, flicked her wrist at the door. She heard the lock unclick and she pushed the door open. She found Phoebe curled up next to the toilet, knees pressed to her chest.

"Phoebe what's wrong?" Prue asked, bending down to sit next to her sister. Piper followed, shutting the door but not locking it.

"Leave me alone," the ten-year-old sniffled.

"No, come on Pheebs. What's wrong?" Prue demanded. Phoebe's lip quivered as she pulled her legs away from her chest and revealed a small stain on her pajama pants. Prue smiled.

"You don't have to get all upset," she said gently, pulling her baby sister into her arms.

"It just…happened," Phoebe gasped.

"You're ok," Prue continued to console her sister.

"Yeah Pheebs, it happens to all girls," Piper added, squeezing her sibling's hand.

"Even to you?" Phoebe whimpered.

"Yep…even to us. Now come on. Let's get you cleaned up," Prue said and the trio of sisters stood up. Piper went to get a pair of clean underwear and pants while Prue explained the finer points of puberty to Phoebe. When they all arrived downstairs some forty minutes later, she had calmed down.

"Everything ok?" Victor asked over the sports page of the newspaper.

"Everything is fine," Piper answered as she got Phoebe a glass of orange juice. Victor seemed to buy the answer as nothing more was said over the morning meal. Just as they were putting their dishes in the sink, there was honk outside. They rushed to grab backpacks and head out to get on the bus.

"I can't wait until I can drive," Prue grumbled as they grabbed seats near the back of the bus.

"Me either. I don't like taking the bus," Phoebe muttered.

"It would be really nice. Then we could talk about…family stuff," Piper added. They fell into silence as the bus continued on its route, picking up other kids of various ages. They finally disembarked and went their separate ways, Prue heading for the high school and Phoebe and Piper for the junior high. The fifth grade had b een moved up to the higher level two years before Phoebe had gotten there. There was a distant ringing noise as Phoebe and Piper neared the front doors. Piper stopped and turned around, a loo k of expectation on her face.

"What is it?" Phoebe asked, trying to see what her sister was looking for.

"Nothing….I must have imagined it," she said hurriedly. Phoebe could tell, whether by sisterly instinct or empathy she wasn't sure, that Piper wasn't telling the whole truth.

"No…what was it?" Phoebe pressed as they started up the stairs.

"I just…thought I heard Leo orb," she mumbled. Phoebe wrapped an arm around Piper's waist as they finally reached the doors.

"I know you miss him," she said. Piper couldn't help but laugh a little bit.

"I just don't understand why he's been gone so long," Piper sighed as they came to a stop at the first row of lockers.

"I'm sure he'll be back," Phoebe tried to reassure her older sister as they parted ways.

Over at the high school, Prue was putting books in her locker when he felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around, instinctively ready to send whatever or whoever it was flying when she realized it was Andy. She blushed a bit and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

"Hi Andy. You scared me," she finally managed to get out.

"Sorry. Didn't meant to," he said, leaning on the locker next to hers.

"What's up?" she asked, staring to walked to her first class.

"Not much. Just felt like seeing you," he answered, trying to slip an arm around her waist. Prue knew that Andy liked her. He'd liked her for years. But she also knew that even though he knew Andy, Victor would not be pleased if she came home with a boy.

"That's sweet," Prue began.

"Prue," he interrupted her. She stopped walking and looked at him.

"I…I really like you and I really want you to be my girlfriend. But every time I try to do something nice you back away," he said, sounding frustrated.

"It's not that I don't like you…believe me I do. And I do want to date you but…my Dad is just really strict about that kind of thing," Prue answered. It was the truth.

"But your Dad knows me. We've been friends forever," Andy protested.

"I know that. How about…you come over tonight and we can talk to him," she suggested. He nodded and they finished their trek to class, making it to their seats just before the bell rang.

The morning passed by relatively uneventfully for Prue and Andy. They parted ways after second period, Prue heading off to English and Andy to Chemistry. She sat in class, trying to pay attention to the lesson when she got a very strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. She felt like something was gnawing at her…trying to tell her something. Biting her lip she closed her eyes and concentrated, feeling herself leave her body. When she rematerialized she was standing in the nurse's office of the junior high. She looked around only to spot Phoebe sitting on a bed. The nurse didn't seem to be anywhere in sight.

"Phoebe?" Prue hissed, sneaking towards her.

"Prue…what are you doing here?" Phoebe asked.

"I don't know. I got this weird feeling in my stomach and I astral projected and ended up here. Is everything alright?" Prue answered, sitting on the bed next to her sister.

"I just don't feel good. My stomach hurts," Phoebe murmured.

"Cramps," Prue snickered, pulling Phoebe into a hug.

"They'll go away after a while. Just take some Advil and you'll be fine," she added and stood immediately. She heard footsteps.

"Thanks. See you tonight," Phoebe called as Prue disappeared.

That afternoon, the girls boarded the bus and Andy joined them. Phoebe looked tired but otherwise ok. Piper was staring out the window, looking forlorn.

"What's wrong with her?" Prue hissed in Phoebe's ear.

"She misses Leo," Phoebe answered. Prue placed a hand on Piper's shoulder, drawing her attention away from the people milling around outside.

"Huh?" Piper asked, startled.

"We miss him too," she whispered. Piper gave a weary smile but they all knew she wasn't really ok. It was obvious to Prue and Phoebe that Piper had harbored a huge crush on their whitelighter from the day they'd met him.

"This is our stop," Andy said, pulling the girls from their thoughts. They got off the bus and instead of parting on the sidewalk, all headed for the Manor. Victor's car was I the driveway. Even though the girls were all old enough now to be home alone, he'd still come home from work early to be there. It had become a habit over the last few years.

"We're home," Prue called, tossing her bag on the bottom of the stairs. Wordlessly Piper disappeared up the stairs. Phoebe headed for the kitchen.

"In here," Victor called and Prue led Andy into the sun room.

"Hey Mr. Bennett," Andy greeted.

"Hi Andy," he replied.

"Can Andy stay for dinner?" Prue asked.

"Uh…yeah I suppose," Victor answered.

"Thanks. We're going to do some homework," she said and the two disappeared. Phoebe soon replaced them, sitting down next to her father with a bowl of cereal.

"Cereal at this hour?" he asked.

"It's all I felt like eating," Phoebe muttered. She was nervous about telling her father what had happened that morning. She also knew he was going to ask about it.

"Want to tell me what happened this morning?" he asked. She fidgeted.

"It's girl stuff," she mumbled against her spoon.

"Oh. You can talk to me about that you know. I know you've got your sisters but I am here too," he said, squeezing her hand.

"But you're a guy," she said, wrinkling her nose.

"But I'm your Dad and I want to be there for you," he said. Phoebe nodded and went back to her cereal.

Upstairs Prue and Andy were sitting on her bed, staring at math homework. Neither of them was really interested in the assignment. Andy kept glancing at Prue who was intently listening to any noises that came from the next room. She figured Piper was probably crying. She'd seen her do it a lot lately when she was alone.

"I'll be right back. I just need to go check on Piper. She's been a little…down lately," Prue said hurriedly and slipped from the room. She walked into her younger sisters' room to find Piper coming out.

"Where are you going?" Prue asked, starting to follow Piper upstairs to the attic.

"I'm going to find Leo," she said firmly.

"What? You're going to scry for him? Haven't you already tried that?" the older of the two asked.

"Well I'm going to try again," Piper snapped, rolling out the map and grabbing a scrying crystal. Prue just watched her sister's fruitless efforts. Finally she walked over to the table and put her hand over Piper's.

"Maybe two of us will be stronger," she suggested. Piper just nodded and the crystal seemed to swing faster but still it did not land.

"Why is he doing this? He told us he would always be there when we needed him," Piper spat, tossing the crystal to the table.

"Maybe it's not Leo," Prue offered but Piper didn't seem to accept that answer. She started pacing in tight circles until she finally stopped and looked up at the ceiling.

"Leo!" she yelled as loud as she could. It felt as if the house itself shook with her emotion. Prue cringed at the look of anger of Piper's face. However, to both of their surprise there was a jingle and a swirl of blue and white lights. Once they had dissipated, Leo stood before them. Piper's eyes flooded with tears and she couldn't stop herself from falling into his arms.


	2. Questions and Answers

_Questions and Answers_

He looked surprised as she fell into his arms but he held her tight nonetheless. Her sobs slowly started to die down in volume and intensity. Eventually they stopped all together. Prue just stood by and watched it happen. She had no idea what was going to happen next but she was sure glad she wasn't Leo. She knew Piper's power could kick some serious ass when she wanted it to. She considered going back down to see what Andy was doing but she also had the feeling she shouldn't leave them alone right now. Finally Piper's tears gave way to anger. He drew away from Leo's embrace and began to hit him in the chest.

"How could you?" she shouted at him. Leo didn't say anything. He didn't even move. Prue wondered how could take Piper being so angry at him.

"You said you'd always be there and you weren't," she continued her tirade. Still Leo did not flinch a muscle or say a word.

"You're not better than Dad," she ground out. At that point Prue had to step in. She dragged her sister away from Leo.

"Say something," Piper shouted at him, lapsing back into tears. For a thirteen-year-old she had a lot of emotion pent up inside. Prue was surprised all the yelling hadn't drawn the rest of the house's occupants upstairs.

"I'm really sorry I've been away for so long," Leo said calmly. God how could he be so calm when Piper was ready to burst, to blow him into tiny pieces.

"That's all you can come up with?" Piper spat, pulling her arms from her sister's grip and began pacing.

"Ok…Piper…just sit down," Prue coaxed, guiding her wandering sister to a chair. She turned to face their whitelighter of five years.

"Can we talk over there?" she questioned, nodding her head towards the stairs.

"I can hear you," Piper grumbled.

"We'll be right back," Prue said and ushered Leo to the stairs.

"Where have you been? She's been an emotional wreck for weeks. Not to put pressure on your anything but she is a real pain when she's like this," Prue let into him. A part of her felt guilty for it. She didn't want to gang up on him. But a bigger part of her, the part that was the bigger sister, felt that she had to defend Piper's feelings.

"I am sorry Prue. But there was nothing I could do. I tried to see you girls but my bosses wouldn't let me," he sighed.

"So you're blaming this on the Elders?" Prue asked with a snort. They had proved to be a useful scapegoat every now and then in the past.

"They don't always make sense," he mumbled. He knew he had disappointed the girls, Piper especially. But how could he tell any of them that Piper had been the reason the Elders had kept him away?

"Well you'd better come up with a better answer than that because Piper isn't going to like that one," Prue sighed and started down the stairs.

"Oh…you might to let Phoebe and Dad know you're back," she called over her shoulder. She stopped on the second landing, pausing for a moment to consider letting Victor and Phoebe know about Leo's return herself but headed back towards her room instead. When she walked back in, she found Andy looking at the picture on her desk.

"Hey, sorry I took so long," she apologized, getting his attention.

"Is everything ok?" he asked as he set the picture down.

"I thought I heard some noises," he continued.

"Oh yeah…everything is fine," Prue lied as she heard footsteps on the stairs.

"So…should we actually try to get some work done?" she questioned and with a half smile Andy nodded. They resumed their positions on her bed and picked up their history books.

Downstairs Phoebe and Victor were still sitting in the sun room, Phoebe's cereal bowl now empty and sitting on the table in front of them. Footsteps resounded in the kitchen and then stopped in the doorway. Phoebe looked up and nearly fell off the couch trying to get up.

"Leo!" she exclaimed happily. He smiled at her weakly and gave her a gentle hug. Victor was now standing.

"Welcome back," he said, extending his hand.

"Thanks," Leo murmured. Victor picked up on his unease and ushered him into the kitchen.

"Is everything ok? You haven't been around lately and the girls were getting worried," Victor pressed.

"I know. I've tried to apologize to the girls for not being here but I'm not having much luck," Leo began, taking a deep breath.

"Piper was devastated," Victor interrupted.

"Believe me I could feel her pain. And I wanted to be here for them. But the Elders kept me away," Leo continued. The more he blamed the Elders for this mess, the lamer it sounded in his head.

"Why would the Elders keep you away from the girls?" Victor demanded.

"You're not going to like the answer, Victor," Leo said, trying to lessen the blow.

"Try me," Victor retorted.

"They're afraid that…Piper is…that she's falling in love with me," Leo admitted.

"That's crazy. She's thirteen. What does she know about love?" Victor snapped.

"Don't underestimate your daughter," Leo shot back. Just then loud footsteps came pounding down the stairs and Piper appeared looking puffy eyed. She spotted Leo and with as much force as she could, she flicked her hands at him. He disappeared into millions of tiny orbs only to reappear, whole and unscathed on the other side of the kitchen.

"Piper why did you just blow him up?" Victor demanded.

"He deserved it," the thirteen-year-old ground out, storming into the next room.

"Leo's back," Phoebe repeated when she saw Piper.

"Don't remind me," her older sibling spat.

"I need to get going on dinner. Care to help?" Victor asked, addressing Leo.

"Maybe I should just leave. It's obvious Piper doesn't want me here," Leo began.

"Nonsense. You're staying. You just need to talk to her," Victor rebutted.

Forty minutes later dinner was ready and waiting on the table. Phoebe and Piper sat down and Leo joined them. He sat as far from Piper as he could. She just glared at him.

"Prue! Andy! Dinner's ready," Victor called up the stairs. The pair descended and took the other spots at the table. The meal began with no major disasters. Andy had been introduced to Leo as a family friend. Piper only glared at him. As the meal was concluding Andy got up the courage to ask Victor the question that he'd been dying to ask for weeks.

"Uh…Mr. Bennett," he began but Victor held up a hand.

"Please Andy. Call me Victor," he interrupted. Andy nodded and swallowed.

"Victor….Can I ask you something?" the fifteen-year-old asked, shooting a look in Prue's direction. Her eyes immediately focused on the last little bits of food left on her plate.

"Sure," Victor replied. Leo seemed to be the only one who noticed how sweaty Andy had gotten in the last minute and a half.

"Would it be ok if…I dated Prue?" Andy asked as confidently as he could. As the words passed over his lips, silverware clattered to the table and Prue looked like she was about to turn into a tomato.

"Excuse me? Did you just ask if you could date my daughter?" Victor asked.

"Yes, sir," Andy answered with a nod.

"Absolutely not," he stated firmly.

"Dad! Why not?" Prue exclaimed.

"You're too young," he replied.

"That's not fair. You know Andy. It's not like you don't know him," she rambled.

"It doesn't matter if I know him or not. You're not going to date him and that's final," Victor responded with a tone of finality.

"Why can't I date? Other girls my age date," Prue demanded.

"You're not other girls, Prue," Victor said. She glared at him and stood up, starting to storm from the room.

"Prue, you were not excused," he called after her.

"I excused myself, Victor," she snarled back from the stairs. Her comment was biting and painful and she knew it. Andy looked shocked and Phoebe inhaled sharply at the way her sister had reverted back to her old attitude towards their father.

"Thanks for dinner," Andy mumbled and quickly stood up. He put his dishes in the sink and grabbed his bag before heading out. Victor just stared open-mouthed at the front door. What was going on? Why was his world suddenly falling apart? It finally registered that he still had two daughters sitting there with him. He needed to try and fix at least some of what was going on.

"Ok. Phoebe can you help me with the dishes? Piper and Leo need to talk in the other room," he said, addressing the ten-year-old. Phoebe nodded and started collecting dishes. Leo stood up and Piper slowly mirrored his actions. They ended up in the living room.

"Piper," Leo began but she cut him off.

"I'm sorry I blew you up," she apologized.

"That's ok. I deserved it," he said, giving her a smile.

"I just…missed you so much. I thought….you decided you didn't want to help us anymore," she said softly.

"I would never want to leave you girls. I promised you when we first met that I would always be there for you," Leo murmured, squeezing her hand.

"But you did leave us," she remarked.

"I had no choice. Sometimes we have to do things that we don't want to do," he answered, hoping it would be enough for her. It was then that he noticed the chain that hung from around her neck. It had been his birthday present to her on her ninth birthday. He wasn't entirely surprised to see her wearing it but it did make him wonder a little.

"But you're not leaving again right?" she begged. He wished he could tell her that he wasn't going anywhere. But he didn't know.

"I'm not sure. I hope not," he said. It was the truth. Piper nodded, not looking at him. She heaved a sigh and stood up. He watched her go into the kitchen and help Victor and Phoebe with the rest of the dishes.

Far below them in the heart of the Underworld three demons stood on a glowing platform. A young boy stood before theme. He had dark eyes and looked a little nervous. The three demons wore black robes with inverted pentacles on the front.

"Do you know who we are?" the demon in the middle asked the boy.

"The Triad," he answered. They nodded in unison.

"Why do you want me here?" he asked.

"Balthazar, you are going to be very powerful some day. A great asset to us," the demon on the left proclaimed.

"What could I do for you?" Balthazar questioned, his body reverting to his demonic form.

"You've heard of the powerful witches, The Charmed Ones haven't you?" the demon on the right asked. He nodded.

"We want them destroyed. And we shall succeed where countless demons…even the Source have failed," the one in the middle sneered.

"How? They're the most powerful witches of all time," the boy gasped.

"With you. You're a child…like them. You can gain their trust. Find a way to defeat them," the trio said in unison. The unison speech made the boy cringe and return to his human form.

"Won't they find me out?" he questioned.

"Not if you are careful. Don't let on that you are a demon. Go by your human name," the demon the right stated firmly. The boy nodded.

"Arrangements will be made to enroll you in their school."

"Go. Serve us well and you will be greatly rewarded," the said again as one. With one last look at the three demons, Balthazar shimmered out of the cave.

"Should we trust such a large task to such a young demon?" one of the Triad asked his comrades.

"We shall see," the other two answered.


	3. The Assimilation

_The Assimilation_

The weekend arrived and tension was still high in the Halliwell household. Prue continued to give Victor the silent treatment and Piper was distancing herself from Leo. She was glad that he was back and so far hadn't disappeared on them but she couldn't seem to trust him. She was currently sitting at the kitchen table staring at her history reading.

"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked, coming to sit next to her sister.

"Trying to do my homework but I can't focus," Piper groaned, slamming the book shut.

"Still thinking about Leo?" her younger sister asked. Piper just shrugged. She wasn't in the mood to talk about Leo right now. She needed to figure out a way to sort out her feelings.

"How am I supposed to live with you people?" Phoebe snapped.

"What do you mean?" Piper asked, raising a brow.

"You aren't talking to Leo even though you really missed him. And Prue and Dad aren't talking. I feel like if I talk to anyone I'll get my head bitten off," the ten-year-old explained in one breath.

"I won't bite your head off. I just don't want to talk about him that's all," Piper murmured, tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear.

"Yeah…I just wish that was how Prue felt," Phoebe grumbled.

Upstairs Prue was staring at her math book. She hated geometry. What was the point of learning all of these rules and properties? She felt her eyes glaze over as she stared at the page of problems. She was so absorbed in hating the assignment that she didn't hear the knock on her door or the footsteps as they entered her room.

"Prue," Victor said. His voice instantly drew her back from her misery. Prue glared at him, picking up her pencil and finishing the problem she'd left off on. Victor closed the distance between them and sat down on the edge of her bed, taking the pencil from her grip.

"Can we talk?" he asked and she ignored him.

"Prue please cut the silent treatment. I'm your father," he tried and she looked at him, her gaze cold.

"There is nothing to talk about, Victor. Now give me my pencil back. I have homework to finish," she said coolly. She snatched the pencil from his hand and turned her gaze back to the book.

"You're going to have to talk to me sometime. You can't stay mad at me forever over this," he sighed. She just shook her head. He opened his mouth to speak again but felt his body being forced backwards by an invisible hand. Before he knew it he'd been sent flying out the door only to have it slam in his face.

"Prue this is not over!" he bellowed and walked away. He found Phoebe and Piper still sitting in the kitchen. Phoebe saw him and winced. She'd heard the door slam and his response.

"I can't believe your sister used her power to throw me out of her room," he ground out.

"Is she grounded?" Phoebe asked in a hushed tone. Victor had decided a while ago that using their powers on him or each other resulted in a week of grounding. It had been enough for them to stay in line. Victor contemplated his youngest daughter's question. The easy answer would be 'yes'.

"No," he finally stated.

"What? That's not fair!" both Phoebe and Piper exclaimed.

"Let me finish. I'd actually like Prue to talk to me again before she turns eighteen. So this is a one time allowance," he said. Neither Piper nor Phoebe looked pleased with their father's explanation. Piper picked up her school books and headed out of the kitchen. Phoebe started to get up but sat down again.

"Dad," she said, looking at him.

"Yeah Pheebs," he said, sitting down across from her.

"You're not mad at me are you?" she asked.

"Of course not. Why would I be mad at you?" he asked,.

"Well I feel like I'm in the middle of everyone and I don't know what to do," she admitted.

"I'm sure everything will be fine soon, sweetheart," Victor said, placing his hand atop hers.

"I hope so. Prue is really making me nervous…since our powers are so tied to our emotions," she muttered. She stood and headed out of the kitchen, leaving Victor to watch her go.

Upstairs, Piper was standing in front of Prue's door. She licked her lips and knocked. At first she didn't get a response so she knocked louder.

"Go away!" Prue called.

"It's Piper. I need to talk to you," her younger sister answered. A minute passed and the door was pulled open and Piper was allowed to enter.

"What's up?" Prue questioned, sitting cross-legged on her bed. Piper joined her.

"It's about Phoebe," Piper began.

"Did she have a premonition?" Prue asked quickly.

"No…she just…feels like she's in the middle of everything and she is panicking," Piper answered.

"What do you mean?" Prue pressed.

"She's afraid that if she takes either your or Dad's side you'll take her head off," Piper snapped.

"I just can't believe he's being such a jerk about me and Andy dating," Prue railed again. It was the same argument as before.

"You're lucky he didn't ground you for using your power on him," Piper said coolly.

"Is that is peace offering? Talk to me and I won't ground you?" Prue asked with a laugh.

"Pretty much. And I'd take it," Piper muttered.

"I just hate that he won't let me do what normal girls my age do. Can't we have at least sort of normal teenage years?" the older of the two sighed, falling back against the pillows.

"I know what you mean. But he does have the right to tell you when you can date," Piper said. She instantly regretted saying it…taking her father's side.

"You won't feel that way when you find a guy you want to date," Prue said.

"Look…I know Phoebe is worried about you…about all of us. You being hostile and stuff could seriously affect our powers. And we never know when a demon is going to show up," Piper said.

"Ok…fine. I'll talk to him if it will make you happy," Prue snapped.

"It would…and it would make Phoebe happy too," Piper answered. Prue was about to get up when she noticed her sister fidgeting with a strand of hair.

"Is there something else you wanted to talk about?" she asked.

"I just don't know what to do about Leo. I mean yeah I'm happy he's back but I can't seem to trust him," she groaned.

"You so like him," Prue giggled.

"You sound like Phoebe did when we met him," Piper said.

"Well…there's nothing wrong with liking Leo. Just…tell him," Prue suggested and stood up. Piper looked at her sister in shock. She couldn't just tell Leo that she liked him. He was their whitelighter and he was older than her…by a lot.

"Where are you going?" Piper asked as Prue started to walk away.

"To make you and Phoebe happy," her sibling called over her shoulder.

Prue headed downstairs, trying to mentally prepare herself for the discussion that would be coming. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and took several deep breaths to steel her nerves before she walked into the kitchen. She found Victor starting dinner. She said nothing, beginning to think this peace talk idea was not so bright. He turned around and looked at her.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Sorry," she said into her shoulder.

"What was that?" he pressed.

"I said I'm sorry. I shouldn't have used my power on you," she said, trying to keep her voice even.

"Talk to Piper, huh?" he said, leaning on the counter.

"I realize that there are more people affected by how I feel in this family than just myself," she said. Victor considered his daughter's statement for a moment. He figured it was her way of saying she wasn't going to be so selfish.

"Anything else you'd like to apologize for?" he prompted. She let out a breath.

"No," she stated.

"You know I had every right to tell you what I did," he informed her.

"Doesn't mean I have to like it," she shot back.

"Don't we deserve to have some kind of a normal life? I mean that's what you wanted right? So why can't I date?" Prue reasoned.

"You think you can keep your big secret from Andy?" Victor questioned.

"I have for the last five years. So why would now be any different?" she replied.

"I just worry about you Prue. I don't want a repeat of New Years Eve of 1980 ok," he sighed and she nodded.

"So can we maybe…make a deal or something?" she asked. He thought about it for a minute.

"You can date when you turn sixteen," he muttered.

"That's like two months away," she groaned.

"Be happy I'm letting you date at all, Prue," he stated firmly.

"Ok…fine. But you're not going to take it back are you?" she grumbled.

"No. When you turn sixteen, you can date," He reiterated. She couldn't help but crack a smile.

"Thanks Dad," she said, reaching to give him a hug. Victor smiled too and gave her a squeeze before she started to run off.

"Where are you running off to?" he called.

"To call Andy," she answered and sprinted off up the stairs.

The rest of the weekend passed by with a lot less tension. Piper was still avoiding Leo but Victor and Pure were back to being hospitable. The Halliwell girls sat on the bus, watching the streets pass by when it stopped at a new stop.

"The bus doesn't stop here," Phoebe noted.

"Maybe there is a new kid," Prue said. They both looked at Piper but she didn't say anything.

"You're not still pining over Leo are you?" Prue asked as the doors opened and a young boy around Piper's age boarded the bus. He caught sight of the girls and sat a few seats away.

"I just…haven't felt like talking to him," Piper muttered.

"Will you please just do it? What's the worst that could happen?" Prue snapped.

"What's the worst? He could leave again," she hissed, drawing the attention of the new boy. Prue glared at him and he turned back around. The bus stopped and Phoebe got off with the rest of the elementary school kids.

"I'll see you later sis," Pure called to Piper as they parted ways to find their lockers. Piper gave her older sibling a wave and leaned against her locker. She didn't notice the person standing next to her until he kicked the locker beside her.

"You're new," Piper said and the boy nodded.

"I'm Piper," she continued and extended her hand.

"Cole," he replied shaking her hand.

"I can't get this stupid locker open," he grumbled. Piper smirked.

"It just takes a special touch," she said in a whisper and jiggled the lock and it popped open.

"Thanks," he said and she nodded before walking away. She ended up in history class. Not two minutes later Cole walked in and sat down two seats away from her. The bell rang and the teacher began the lecture on the weekend's reading. Shortly before the end of class the teacher circulated a group assignment. Piper glanced over it and groaned. She didn't like group projects. Piper barely heard her name called as the bell rang again and class ended.

"Hey," she heard Cole calling. She stopped and turned around.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Uh…we're partners for the assignment. I was thinking maybe we could work on it today after school," he said.

"Today's not good. I have some things I have to do after school and I don't know how long it's going to take," she said, starting to walk towards her next class.

"But it's due by Friday," he said. She sighed; after all he did have a point. But Pure would never forgive her if she didn't talk to Leo today.

"Ok fine…right after school. You can come over to my place I guess," she muttered, pausing to pull a piece of paper and scribbled down the address.

"Ok. I'll see you at four," he called and she just nodded. This was going to be interesting. She couldn't wait to get to lunch and tell Prue.

"I have to tell you something," Piper said when she spotted Prue sitting alone.

"Shoot," she said, watching for Andy to join them.

"The new kid on the bus…he's in my history class and we have to do a project together. He's coming over at four…so I guess Leo and my talk will have to be really fast," Piper informed her sister.

"Wait…you invited the kid to the Manor? What if a demon attacks?" Prue hissed.

"One hasn't attacked in a while," Piper said helplessly.

"Besides he was really insistent about meeting today," she added. Prue just gave her sister an uneasy look as Andy joined them.


	4. Behind Enemy Lines

_Behind Enemy Lines_

Piper and her sisters stepped off the bus a little after three o'clock that afternoon. Prue checked the mail and grabbed the handful of envelopes from within before they headed inside.

"We're home," she called out as she tossed her bag on the stairs. Phoebe headed for the kitchen and rummaged through the fridge for something to eat. She didn't find anything very appetizing.

"Here's the mail," Prue stated, handing it over to Victor. He took it and flipped through it quickly.

"So how was school today?" he asked as his eyes followed Phoebe's hands into the freeze. He shook his head when they come out bearing a tub of ice cream.

"Phoebe, put the ice cream back," he instructed. She gave him a pout but he shook his head.

"There's nothing good to eat," she complained.

'Sorry kiddo. We'll eat dinner a little early tonight," Victor promised her. With a huff she grabbed her backpack.

"By the way, I got a B plus on my reading test," she shouted over her shoulder in response to his earlier question. Piper was glancing at the clock anxiously.

"What about you two? Anything interesting happen today?" Victor addressed his two other daughters.

"There's a new kid at school. He's in my history class and he's coming over at four to do a project. But I have to go," Piper said in one breath and ran for the stairs.

"Is she ok?" Victor questioned.

"She's finally going to talk to Leo," Prue answered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"About what?" her father probed.

"Not sure," Prue lied as she too headed upstairs. Victor watched her go. He could tell she wasn't telling the whole story. He wanted to know what was going on his girls' lives but he had t accept that they were growing up and weren't going to share every detail with him.

Upstairs Piper was pacing in her and Phoebe's room. Phoebe was staring at her older sister as she continued to wear a circle into the wood. Piper knew she had to talk to Leo today but it didn't make it any easier for her.

"Would you just call Leo already?" Phoebe groaned.

"Ok, ok…I uh…I'll be in the attic," her sibling muttered and walked out of the room. She was already up the second flight of stairs when Prue reached the middle landing. With a shake of her head, Prue headed into her room. In the attic Piper was once more pacing a circle into the old wood.

"Leo," she finally called out. Instantly blue and white orbs appeared, depositing Leo in front of her.

"Piper," he stated, looking at her anxious expression.

"Can we talk?" she asked. He nodded and they both sad down on the nearby couch. Piper stared at her hands for a few seconds before looking up at Leo.

"I'm scared,' she voiced. He moved an inch closer and placed a hand on her arm.

"Why are you scared?" he asked. He had a feeling he knew why but he wanted to let her say it.

"Because I think I might…have a crush on…someone and I don't know what they'd say if I told them,' she said.

"Well you won't know what they will say if you don't tell them," he reasoned. She nodded her head and wrung her hands a little more.

"I…I like you Leo and I know it sounds crazy because you're our whitelighter but I do," she blurted. His reaction was not what she had been expecting. He took her hands gently in his and looked her straight in the eyes.

"I know you like me," he began and her brow furrowed.

"You do?" she asked, looking surprised.

"Yes. It's why the Elders kept me away for so long. They don't want you falling for me. It's against the rules," he explained. He could feel her heart sink.

"Oh," she said, averting her gaze.

"They think I won't be able to do my job if something ever happened," he continued.

"Your job?" she sniffed.

"Yes…protecting and guiding you and your sisters," he explained.

"So what happens then? Do you get reassigned or something?' she asked, trying to regain her composure.

"I'm not sure yet, Piper. I don't want to be reassigned," he breathed, holding her close. She rested her chin on his shoulder and just let him hold her. She hadn't had too much contact with the Elders over the last five years but she still was wary of them.

"How am I supposed to just stop liking you?" she gasped, trying to dry her eyes.

"We will figure it out. I promise we will," he told her. They fell into silence for a minute.

"Leo?" she asked and he looked at her.

"Do you like me too?" she questioned sheepishly. She didn't think it would make her feel so silly in her head.

"Very much," he answered with a grin. Piper let out a hiccup of a laugh. It was only slightly creepy and disturbing that an angel had feelings for her.

Below them, Prue was finishing her homework when she heard the doorbell ring. She peered out the window to see a figure standing at the door. She checked the time and realized it was four already. The doorbell rang a second time and still no one answered. Focusing, she astral projected herself downstairs and pulled the door open. Cole stood before her with his backpack slung over one shoulder.

"Can I help you?" she asked, not letting him cross the threshold.

"Uh…I'm here to see Piper. She and I have to work on a project," he answered, trying to glance beyond Prue' body into the Manor.

"Oh…come in I guess," Prue's astral self said and allowed the boy through the front door. The exchange had drawn Victor from the sun room.

"Who is this?" he asked, indicating the guest.

"Cole Turner. I'm new. Piper and I have a project to do for history," he answered, extending his hand. Victor nodded and shook hands briefly.

"Prue can you let your sister know that her friend is here?" Victor asked. Prue nodded and almost disappeared when she remembered they had a mortal in the house, or so she thought. She raced up the stairs out of view and then disappeared. The real Prue opened her eyes and slowly stood up. She peeked into Phoebe and Piper's room to find only Phoebe.

"Piper is…" Prue began to ask.

"Attic with Leo," Phoebe answered without looking up from her book.

Prue raced up the stairs and saw that the attic door was open. She walked in to find Piper wrapped in Leo's arms.

"Sorry to interrupt…whatever is going up here but your little friend from history class is downstairs," Prue announced. Piper looked up.

"He's early," she stated.

"No…he's on time. You are running late," Prue answered. Piper checked her watch and leapt out of Leo's grasp.

"Thanks for the talk Leo. I'll see you later," Piper called as she took the stairs two at a time.

"You ok?" Prue asked of Leo.

"Yeah…well it will be I hope," he answered as he orbed out of the attic. With a shrug, Prue headed back to her room with the intention of calling Andy. Piper stopped off in her room to grab her backpack.

"How did it go with Leo?" Phoebe asked, looking up.

"I…well he knew I like him. And he likes me back but the Elders don't allow witches and whitelighters to…" she began to explain.

"Whoah he likes you back? But isn't he like a million years old?" he ten-year-old gasped.

"He's not a million years old, Phoebe," Piper spat as she grabbed her bag and headed downstairs. She found Victor and Cole sitting in the living room.

"Sorry…I didn't realize what time it was," Piper apologized to her guest.

"That's ok," Cole replied.

"I'll leave you two to it then," Victor said and walked out of the room.

"So…you have a sister?" Cole probed as Piper got out the assignment.

"Two actually. Phoebe's ten," Piper answered offhandedly.

"You all have P names?" he observed.

"Yeah…it's kind of a family tradition. Can we just do this project?" she snapped. He backed off a little. He pulled out his copy of the assignment. They both stared down at the typed sheet of paper. It read:

_In pairs you will select a time period of American history and prepare a poster and presentation for the class. Your presentation must be between three to five minutes long. You may use index cards for your notes._

"Well it seems easy enough," Cole muttered.

"I don't know if we have any poster board," Piper interjected.

"We probably should pick a time period first," he suggested and she nodded. She really disliked history class this year.

"I think we should do it during the Great Depression," Piper said.

"Why? So a lot of people didn't have jobs and were poor. That's not that interesting," Cole replied.

"Ok…well do you have any ideas then?" she snapped.

"Maybe. What about something like…the Salem Witch Trials? Now that was cool," he countered. The mention of the words 'witch' and 'trial' in the same sentence made Piper cringe inwardly. She didn't know much about the time expect that for their ancestor, Melinda Warren, had been burned at the stake for being accused as a witch. Then again, maybe his idea wasn't such a bad one. It would give her a chance to learn more about the time when Melinda lived.

"I guess we can do that. We'd need to go to the library," Piper finally answered.

"Ok. Well can't your Dad drive us or something?" Cole pressed.

"I can ask him. But why can't your Mom or Dad drive?" Piper questioned.

"My Dad's dead," Cole spat.

"Oh…sorry. I didn't know," Piper apologized as she went in search of Victor..

'Dad…we need to go to the library. Can you drive us?" Piper asked.

"I'm sorry sweetheart but I'm expecting an important call from work. Ask Prue if she can take you," he answered. Piper nodded and ascended the stairs.

"Can you drive Cole and I to the library?" she asked, leaning on the doorframe.

"Sure. I guess," Prue replied and grabbed a jacket.

"Hey Pheebs, you want to go to the library with us?" Prue asked as they passed by Piper and Phoebe's room.

"Ok," the ten-year-old answered and jumped off her bed. The trio of sisters started down the stairs.

"So what is your project on?" Prue inquired.

"The Salem Witch Trials," Piper muttered.

"Piper! Are you crazy? Do you want him to find out?" Prue hissed, stopping them all dead in their racks.

"No. Besides I doubt we would find anything at the library about Melinda Warren. Besides there wouldn't be any way to connect us," Piper retorted.

"And…it was his idea," she added as they reached the living room.

"Let's go. The library closes at six," Prue ordered. Cole took in all three sisters standing in the doorway. Even though they were just girls they somehow seemed imposing to him. He gathered his stuff and they all climbed into Victor's car.

"We'll meet by the reception desk in an hour," Prue stated and left Cole and Piper to their researching. Phoebe followed after Prue. Cole watched the two sisters walk away and couldn't help but let his gaze linger a little on Phoebe.

"Let's get started," Piper said, her voice snapping him back to reality. They spent the next forty minutes looking up information and taking notes. They agreed to meet after school the next day to put the poster together.

In the fiction section Prue was browsing the shelves when she felt a hand tug on her sleeve. She turned to see Phoebe looking a little freaked out.

"What's up?" Prue asked in a hushed tone and it wasn't due to the fact that they were in a library.

"I just had a premonition. I think…there is a new demon in the neighborhood," Phoebe rasped. Prue grabbed Phoebe and sprinted to where Piper and Cole were waiting.

"Ok…time to go. Where do you want me to drop you off?" she said, addressing Cole.

"I can walk home. I don't live far. Thanks for the ride here," he muttered. He turned to Piper.

"I'll see you after school tomorrow to do the poster," he said. Piper saw the anxious look in Prue's eyes and just nodded that she'd heard him. As quickly as they could the three sisters walked out of the library and climbed back into Victor's car.


	5. Testing the Waters

_Testing the Waters_

Prue raced down the San Francisco streets back to the Manor. She'd narrowly avoided be pulled over by a cop. Phoebe was clutching the door as they finally came to a halt.

"Don't do that again. I thought I was going to puke," the youngest of the three rasped out. Prue didn't respond. She just climbed out of the car rushed up to the front door. Piper and Phoebe sprinted after her.

"What's going on, Prue? Where are you so freaky?" Piper shouted.

"Phoebe had a premonition," Prue answered. That drew Victor in from the sun room.

"Girls, can you keep it down. I'm on the phone," he said in a hiss. Prue nodded and began to drag her siblings up the stairs.

"Wait what did you see?" Piper asked her younger sister.

"Well…it was this demon…it was really big and ugly. It was trying to get the Book of Shadows," she answered.

"That's it? That's all you saw?" Piper ranted.

"It's not like I can see anything I want to, Piper," Phoebe snapped. They'd reached the attic and Prue was flipping the pages vigorously.

"Look and see if the demon is in here," she instructed Phoebe. The ten-year-old looked a little taken aback at her sister's tone but did as she was told. She started at the front and worked her way through. She finally found the demon she'd seen in her vision.

"I found him," she announced. Her siblings crowded around the book.

"Balthazar," Prue read.

"He looks like he's pretty high up in the demon food chain," Piper added.

"Wow he is pretty powerful. Maybe we need to ask Leo if he knows anything about this demon," Phoebe suggested. Piper couldn't hide the small smile that crept onto her lips.

"Leo!" Prue bellowed and he appeared instantly.

"What's wrong?" he asked, looking between thee three girls and the book.

"Do you know anything about this demon?" the eldest sister asked, turning the book to face the whitelighter.

"Balthazar is an upper level demon. There are rumors that he was close to the Source," Leo began to recount.

"But we vanquished the Source," Piper stated.

"Maybe this Balthazar guy took his place?" Phoebe wondered aloud.

"Wouldn't he have tried to come after us if he took over the Source's place?" Prue snapped.

"It was just an idea," Phoebe shot back.

"He's killed a lot of witches in the last ninety years or so. Why are you looking at him?" Leo informed them.

"I had a premonition of him trying to steal the Book," Phoebe responded.

"Could you tell if anyone was home?" the whitelighter probed.

"I don't think so. I think it was maybe the afternoon. I don't think we were home yet," she answered but she couldn't be sure.

"I think you should hide the book for the time being. Just to be on the safe side," he suggested.

"Thanks," Prue said and closed the book.

"Oh…the Elders think there may be a new power rising in the Underworld and ot keep your eyes open," he added before he orbed out.

"A new power, great. Like the last one we defeated wasn't bad enough," Prue groaned.

"Girls! Dinner's ready," Victor called from downstairs.

Prue slid the book into one of Grams' old trunks and they headed downstairs. They joined their father at the table and shared a quiet meal.

"How did the library go?" he addressed his middle daughter.

"Fine. We just have to do the poster tomorrow," she answered around a mouthful of bread.

"Good," he said.

"Prue nearly killed us driving home," Phoebe interjected.

"I did not," Prue protested.

"You were so going over the limit," the ten-year-old quipped.

"I was not," Prue said.

"Prue," Victor said in that telltale 'don't lie to me' tone.

"Ok so maybe I was going a little fast. But we didn't know when Phoebe's vision was and I wanted to make sure the book was safe," Prue said in a huge breath.

"Is everything ok?" he asked, seeming to forget that his underage daughter had nearly been caught speeding in his car.

"Yes. We hid the book so hopefully the demon won't find it," Phoebe answered.

The rest of the meal passed easily enough and the girls went their separate ways to finish up homework and take showers. The following morning, Piper was up early, organizing her presentation notes so she wouldn't have to do it that afternoon. She was staring at some of the figures they'd found in the books and she cringed. She couldn't believe so many innocent people had been condemned. Then a thought occurred to her. Melinda Warren had really been a witch. So did that make her innocent or guilty? She tried to shake the thought from her head the rest of the morning as she sat through math class and science. She caught up with Cole right before lunch.

"We're still on for this afternoon right?" he asked as they opened their lockers.

"Yeah. I talked to the teacher and she said she has poster board for us," Piper answered.

"Ok. We can meet here and then go up to the library," he suggested. She nodded and watched him walk away. She got a strange feeling about him but ignored it. She joined Prue for lunch. Andy had decided to skip lunch to study for a quiz.

"Piper…anyone in there?" Prue asked, snapping her fingers in front of her sister's face.

"Huh? Oh yeah…I've just been thinking," she muttered, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"Not about Leo again I hope," Prue sighed.

"No. Not about Leo…Melinda Warren actually," she replied. Prue scooted closer which was a rather hard thing to do at the small table.

"Don't say her name so loud," she hissed.

"Sorry. I've just been thinking…she was actually a witch. Does that make her an innocent victim or guilty," Piper proposed. Prue's brow furrowed.

"I don't know," she admitted. She didn't like not knowing the answer to magical questions.

"I just can't stop thinking about it. It's this stupid history project. It's got me thinking about this sort of thing," Piper continued.

"Just…be careful. Don't bring it up around the Cole kid," Prue warned.

"Don't worry so much Prue. I can keep our secret. It's Phoebe we should be worried about," Piper reminded her older sibling. With that bell rang and they went their own says again.

That afternoon Piper waited by her locker for Cole to show up. He was nowhere to be found. She checked in the office for his last class and went to find his teacher. He'd been in class and had left with everyone else. Piper started to grow annoyed when he hadn't shown up and it was fifteen minutes later. She finally went up to the library where she'd left the poster board and brought it back down. She half expected Cole to be waiting for her but he was not. She looked around to make sure no one was coming.

"Leo," she called out softly. Blue and white lights appeared before her.

"Piper…you need to be more careful," he warned her.

"I just need a lift home," she explained. Leo led her out of sight and together they disappeared in orbs. They reappeared in the Manor foyer. They nearly ran into Phoebe and Prue walking through the door.

"I thought you were staying after school," Prue commented.

"He never showed up," Piper answered.

"Which is weird because he told me he'd be there," she added, setting the poster board down.

"So you're just going to do the poster yourself?" Phoebe inquired and Piper nodded.

Just then they heard a loud crash from upstairs. They shared a look and started to run up the stairs. Bags were left on the stairs as they made their way up to the first floor landing. They did a cursory check and found nothing out of the order.

"The attic," Prue shouted and was ready to astral project when Phoebe whizzed by her. The youngest Halliwell sister was up the stairs in a heart beat. Piper and Prue found her standing frozen in the doorway staring at a very large and very menacing demon. He turned to face them.

"Where's the book!" he demanded.

"I'm guessing that's Balthazar," Prue rasped and her sisters nodded.

"Sorry…we don't know what you're talking about," Piper lied, hoping it would work. All she got for her efforts was an energy ball sailing straight at her head. She froze it just in time.

"Back off," Prue spat, sending the energy ball back at him. He moved out of the way just in time for it to hit the trunk where the book was hidden. The lid blew off and the book lay in plain sight.

"The Book," Phoebe screamed as Balthazar began to reach for it.

"Freeze him, Piper!" Prue shouted and Piper's hands flew up but nothing happened.

"I'm trying," she said, her voice was beginning to grow hoarse. They could only watch in horror as his clawed hand came within a few centimeters of the leather cover. In the blink of an eye the book shocked him, sending him flying backwards.

"I thought that only worked on the Source," Phoebe whispered.

"I guess it's all evil," Piper answered. Balthazar turned back to the girls. He glared at them and sent a volley of fire balls their way. They had to dodge out of the way so as not to get hit. One grazed Piper's arm. Prue concentrated and astral projected herself behind the demon.

"Behind you," she called. He looked over his shoulder at her.

"Stupid witch," he growled and grabbed her, his hand wrapping tightly around her throat. She struggled for a moment and then disappeared. The real Prue woke up, clutching her throat.

"I'll be back," he snarled and disappeared in a shimmer.

The girls slowly stood back up and looked around the attic. In the time it had taken them to get upstairs, Balthazar had done a fair number on the place. There were scorch marks on various surfaces and several pieces of broken furniture.

"Man…why do demons have to make such a mess?" Prue groaned as they began to right what they could without magic.

"Because they are evil and don't care about other people's stuff," Phoebe offered as she tried to put a chair back together. She only succeeded in giving herself a splinter.

"Is everyone ok up here?" Leo called, running in. Piper had to wonder where he'd been the whole time.

"We're fine. The attic isn't," Prue answered. Leo surveyed the girls and noted Piper's arm.

"You're hurt," he stated more than questioned. He placed a hand over the wound and with a golden light the skin knit itself back together.

"Thanks," she said, blushing a little at the gesture.

"Can you heal this splinter?" Phoebe called, holding up her swollen finger. He smiled and motioned for her to join them. Moments later her finger was good as new.

"Well I have some tools downstairs. I can probably fix most of the stuff up here," he said as they headed back downstairs.

"I missed something didn't I," Victor stated.

"Just a really big, scary demon who tried to steal the Book of Shadows," Phoebe answered.

"The same demon from your vision?" he questioned and she nodded.

"But he didn't get it. We're going to have to figure out a better way of keeping it safe. He said he'd be back," Piper answered, spotting her poster.

"But now that the demon is gone for now…I have a poster to do," she said, not sounding too happy about having to it by herself. She'd have to give Cole a good thrashing the next day in class.

"Do you want any help?" Victor offered but she shook her head as she headed up the stairs once more.

Leo headed for the kitchen to get the tool box and Victor returned to the sun room to finish the last bits of work he'd brought home with him. Prue and Phoebe just shared a look. They had a feeling this was going to be a very long battle ahead. If Balthazar really was as powerful as the book said, then they were going to need to step up their game…a lot.


	6. Present Arms

_Present Arms_

Friday morning rolled around and Piper woke up late. She looked over to see Phoebe's bed already made. She checked the clock and nearly jumped. She scrambled from bed and rushed towards the bathroom. Luckily for her, no one was currently occupying it. She rushed around, brushing her hair and teeth simultaneously. Some ten minutes later she rushed into the kitchen to find the rest of her family eating breakfast quietly.

"Morning sweetie," Victor said from behind the front page of the paper. Prue noticed how flustered Piper looked.

"Calm down, you aren't running that late," she said, taking a bite of cereal. Piper took a minute to calm herself down before pouring herself a bowl of cereal and joining her family at the table.

"Good luck on your presentation," Phoebe said as she took a sip of juice.

"Thanks. Cole wasn't in school yesterday so I hope I don't have to do it all by myself," she grumbled. The Halliwells finished their breakfast in silence and gathered their school things. Once on the bus, Piper's gaze scanned every person that go on along the route. Her heart had sunk to about her stomach when the bus stopped and Cole climbed on.

"Thank God," she breathed. He sat in the seat across from her.

"Are you ready for the presentation?" Piper addressed him as the bus started moving again.

"Yeah. Sorry I wasn't there after school. I had to see another teacher and by the time I got to the lockers you were gone," Cole answered.

"Oh. Well the poster is finished," she muttered.

"Ok. I'll see you in history I guess," he said as the bus stopped to let off the elementary school students. It drove a few hundred yards to the high school and everyone else climbed off. Piper had to turn the poster vertical so she could get out the door.

"He is definitely a weird kid," Prue said in Piper's ear as they walked up the front steps. Piper just nodded her head as they went their separate ways. Piper lugged the poster around for her first classes before she finally reached history. She sat down in her seat and Cole joined her.

"You ready, partner?" he whispered. She just rolled her eyes.

"Just don't mess up," Piper hissed back. They sat in silence, scribbling notes as each group presented. They sat through presentations on the Revolutionary War, the Civil War and World War I.

"Who would like to go next?" the teacher asked. Cole's hand shot up like a bottle rocket. She nodded at him and the two students stood up. They moved to face the class and placed their poster on the edge of the chalkboard.

"For our project, we decided to study the Salem Witch Trials of 1692," Piper began. She started out by giving them some of the statistics about how many people had been hanged and burned at the stake for being called witches. Partway through Cole took over.

"We found that part of the reason the trials took place because the Puritans were very suspicious of those who weren't like them. One of the biggest reasons they targeted some of the women was because they didn't go to Sunday Meeting and lived alone," he explained.

"We were able to find some transcripts of the trails," Piper added, pointing to the photocopies on the poster.

"Thank you. Does anyone have any questions?" the teacher addressed the class. One girl raised her hand.

"Could they prove if any of the people who were killed were actually witches?" she asked.

"No," Piper answered shortly. With that they received a second round of applause and took their seats.

"Nice job," the boy sitting behind Cole whispered.

Piper was glad to leave the poster behind in the classroom. She was also relieved that the project and presentation was done. It had peeked her interest in her ancestor but the girl's question had made her nervous. She knew it was just an innocent question but it felt like she was trying to expose Piper somehow.

"Hey," Cole called halfway down the hallway.

"We did good, huh?" he asked.

"Yeah I guess we did. I'm just glad it's over though. I don't have to lug that poster around anymore," Piper admitted. Cole just laughed.

"Do you want to study for the history next week?" he asked as they reached their lockers. She didn't answer for a few minutes. She pulled open h er locker and exchanged books. Why did he want to spend so much time with her?

"Maybe. I don't really know. I study better by myself. I'll let you know," she mumbled and raced off to her next class. He watched her go and leaned against his locker. He hoped he could convince her to let him go over to the Manor. Perhaps he could use one of the other sisters to get close to.

Lunch soon arrived and he scanned the tables. He saw Piper sitting with Prue and Andy. He took his chances and sat a table away.

"So I can't believe your Dad is actually going to let us date," Andy said, beaming.

"Yeah…but not for another two months," she muttered.

"Just be happy you can actually date," Piper snapped at her.

"Ok that's kind of gross," Prue whispered back. Andy looked a little confused but didn't ask any questions.

"So how did the history thing go?" she asked.

"It was fine. The teacher seemed to like it. Only one person asked a question," Piper said with a shrug.

"He wants to study together for the test we have next week. You don't think he likes me do you?" Piper gasped. She couldn't imagine liking Cole. He was just too weird for her.

"Maybe he does. You're a very likable person," Andy interjected.

"I don't think that's what she wanted to hear, Andy," Prue said.

"Sorry. I was just being honest," he said with a small smile.

"It's ok. Thanks for the compliment anyway. I'll see you later," Piper said as the bell rang.

Cole watched intently as the sisters conversed and almost forgot to eat lunch. He crammed the food down his throat just as the bell rang. The remainder of the day passed uneventfully. Piper met Prue and Andy outside to wait for the bus.

"I can't wait until you can drive," Prue groaned, resting her head on Andy's shoulder.

"I know. It will be soon. I promise," he said as the bus pulled up.

Piper watched Cole sit a few seats away. He was staring out the window, lost in thought. She shrugged it off as they picked up the younger students at the elementary school. They arrived home around 3:15 and headed into the kitchen to find Leo holding a paintbrush in his hand.

"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked, noting the drop cloth beneath his feet and on the table.

"Well I'm working on fixing up the furniture in the attic and I needed a bigger space to paint and stain," "Leo answered, dipping the brush in a bucket of stain.

"Want some help?" Piper offered.

"Sure," he answered and handed her a brush. Piper carefully dipped the brush in the stain started to methodically cover the right edge of the chair.

Prue quietly slipped from the room and headed up the stairs. Phoebe plopped down and watched the pair work on the chair. She finally pulled out her reading book and tried to do some homework.

"That looks good. We need to let it dry," Leo informed Piper.

"Is that the last one?" she asked and he nodded. As they went to wash the paintbrushes, Victor walked into the room.

"I have to hand it to you, Leo. You certainly do work fast," he said, admiring the chair.

"Thanks, Victor. It's the least I could do," Leo answered, putting the top back on the bucket of stain.

"It should be dry in a couple of hours," he added.

"Great. So how was your presentation?" Victor said, looking at Piper.

"It was ok. This girl asked a question that sort of made me nervous," Piper answered.

"What did she asked?" Phoebe called.

"If any of the people killed were proved to be actual witches," Piper muttered.

"She was probably just curious, honey. I wouldn't read too much into it," Victor tried to reassure her. She just nodded and grabbed her backpack to head upstairs. Phoebe didn't move.

"What's up kiddo?" Victor asked, noticing that Phoebe hadn't moved.

"Nothing. I just feel like doing my homework down here," she said with a shrug.

"How about you do it in the sun room so you don't breathe in all the fumes," he suggested and she scooted from the kitchen chair.

Down in the Underworld Cole was moving along a path. Several larger demons stopped him, not recognizing him in his human form. A shape shifter let out a laugh as he glared at them.

"Lost little boy?" he asked.

"Who are you calling little," Cole spat, transforming into his demon self. They all took a step back.

"So sorry, Balthazar," the shape shifter rasped.

"We didn't recognize you in your human form," another demon added.

"Go," Balthazar ordered and they shimmered away instantly. He let out a small growl and returned to his human form. He continued on his way and entered the Triad's chamber.

"What do you have to report?" the demon in the center asked.

"I've met all three witches. I have spent some time with the middle sister, Piper. I plan to try and get closer to the younger one, Phoebe. She seems the most trusting," he answered.

"I tried to take the Book of Shadows but I didn't anticipate it had defenses of its own," he added. All three demons seemed to grimace.

"It was a small mistake. It won't happen again," he added.

"Good. Now go," the demon on the right ordered. Cole bowed his head and shimmered out of the cave. The three members of the Triad shared a look.

"He had better not fail us," the demon on the right sighed.

"We have given him only a few days. We must give him more time," the demon on the right countered.

"He will not fail if he knows what is good for him," the demon in thee center snickered.

Back at the Manor Victor was finishing making dinner. Phoebe was now watching TV in the living room and Leo had moved the chair back upstairs. He was heading downstairs when he ran into Piper.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?' she asked, holding her math book to her chest.

"I can't. I have other charges that need me right now," he said.

"Oh ok. Well then I guess I will see you later," she muttered. He squeezed her shoulder before orbing out of the hallway. She glanced behind her at Prue's room. The door was locked and she could see that the lock was in place. That was really strange for Prue to do but she figured whatever Prue was doing, it was best to leave her alone.

"Girls! Dinner's ready," Victor called some fifteen minutes later. Piper jumped the last few steps and joined Phoebe and Victor at the table. They sat there for a few minutes but Prue did not appear.

"What is your sister doing?" Victor asked.

"I don't know," Piper answered, her stomach growling loudly. Phoebe stood up and went to the foot of the stairs.

'Prue!" she shouted at the top of her lungs. Loud footsteps could be heard above them and then on the stairs.

"What? Is a demon attacking?" she asked, looking around wildly.

"No…dinner is," Phoebe answered. Prue glared at her sibling.

"I was in the middle of something," Prue grumbled as sat down beside Victor.

"What exactly are you doing up there?" Piper inquired.

"I…I'm making potions. We need to be prepared incase Balthazar attacks again. We can't leave anything to chance," Prue answered calmly.


	7. One Step Closer

_One Step Closer_

After dinner Prue led her siblings up to her room where she had a cauldron sitting on the floor. A row of empty vials sat on her desk. Phoebe peered into the cauldron and wrinkled her nose.

"Gross. What is that?" she asked, looking up at her sibling.

"Well…it's the strongest potion I could come up with. I mean we don't know exactly what we're dealing with," Prue answered. She took a spoon and stirred the contents counter clockwise.

"Can we help?" Piper asked and Prue nodded. Together the three sisters sat around the potion, each bottling several vials. Prue grabbed a box from under her bed and pulled the top off. Inside sat vials of potions in every color imaginable.

"How long have you been doing this?" Piper demanded. She was feeling left out.

"Since the first time Balthazar attacked," Prue replied.

"You should have told us. We would have helped," the middle sister stated, arms crossed over her chest.

"I know…but you had that project to do and I didn't want to worry you guys," Prue admitted.

"But we're a team, Prue. The Power of Three," Phoebe remarked. Prue fixed her baby sister with a look.

"I get it. You want to help. That's fine," Prue muttered. Once the last dregs of the current potion had been siphoned into vials, she started to clean it out.

"Don't you think we've got enough for now?" Piper questioned. Prue heaved a sigh. She had been at this for a while and her fingers were getting tired from cutting the ingredients.

"Maybe you're right. I just…I don't want to be unprepared," she answered.

"We won't be," Piper stated, placing a reassuring hand on her sister's shoulder.

Together, they gathered up the remaining ingredients and the cauldron and headed up to the attic to put it away. As Prue was putting the cauldron away, Piper was flipping through the Book of Shadows. Leo had made a cabinet to keep it in and they'd managed to cast a protection spell on it so that only their touch would open it.

"What re you looking for?" Phoebe asked, plopping down next to Piper on the couch.

"Nothing. Just felt like browsing," Piper answered. Phoebe leaned on her elbow, looking at the book too. Suddenly the pages in the book began to flip of their own volition. It had done this on occasion before but it still startled them.

"Prue…the book is turning pages on its own again," Phoebe called. Prue turned around stared at the book now that the pages had settled themselves. It had opened to the calling a spirit spell. The sisters shared a confused look.

"Is it just me, or are you confused too," Piper asked, looking between Phoebe and Prue.

"Well there has to be a reason it flipped to that spell," Prue muttered.

"I guess we can cast it. I wonder who will show up," Phoebe wondered aloud with a shrug of her shoulders. Piper set the book down on the table nearby and they began gathering candles and set them in a circle. Prue found some matches an carefully lit each candle before blowing it out.

"Ready?" she asked her sisters and they held hands.

"Hear these words, hear my cry spirit from the other side. Come to me I summon thee. Cross now the great divide," the recited in unison. Before their eyes a form began to appear within the circle. Piper letter out a gasp as the figure became their mother.

"Mom," Prue said, sounding surprised. Patty smiled at her daughters and crossed through the barrier, becoming solid.

'Hello girls," she said. She hadn't seen them in nearly five years. She reached out and hugged each of them tightly.

"What are you doing here?" Phoebe asked. It wasn't that she wasn't ecstatic to see their mother but she was still confused.

"Well your Grams thought we all might need a visit. It's been a while," Patty explained.

"Was that her flipping the pages?" Prue asked and Patty nodded.

"So tell me all about what's going on," Patty said, sitting down on the couch.

"I have a boyfriend," Prue said proudly. Piper laughed into her sleeve but it came out sounding more like a hack.

"A boyfriend? And your father is ok with this?" Patty asked, looking surprised.

"She can't date him until she turns sixteen," Phoebe explained.

"I see. His name is Andy. He lives next door," Prue began to elaborate. Patty laughed along with her daughters as they shared the latest goings on in this lives. Piper had grown quiet and Patty caught her looking out the window.

"Piper," she said, placing her hand on her daughter's arm. Piper turned her gaze back to her mother.

"Are you ok?" she asked. Piper didn't respond.

"Girls, could you give us a few minutes?" she asked of her other two girls. Prue nodded and dragged Phoebe out of the attic.

"What's bothering you sweetheart?" Patty asked, lifting Piper's chin with her finger.

"It's complicated," the thirteen-year-old muttered.

"Try me," Patty said.

"I like this guy…and he likes me back but we can't be together," Piper explained.

"Honey, is it because you're only thirteen? Did you dad say you could date when you turn sixteen too?" Patty asked. Piper shook her head.

"No...that's not it," Piper sighed. She took a deep breath.

"You remember Leo, right?" she asked. Patty forced a smile and a nod.

"I…I like him," Piper admitted. Patty took her daughter's hands in her own and gave them a squeeze.

"I know it may seem like you have a crush on him but it will pass," Patty said, hoping she could dissuade her daughter from falling in love with a whitelighter.

"But what if I don't want it to pass?" she asked.

"It will," Patty said, her tone firm. Piper's lower lip quivered for a minute but it passed. Slowly mother and daughter stood up and headed downstairs. Piper looked over her shoulder and saw the book lying open on the table still. She hoped that it would be safe while they went downstairs. They found the rest of the family in the living room. Apparently Prue and Phoebe had filled Victor in because he didn't look surprised to see the ghost of his ex-wife walking into the room.

"Hello Victor," she said with a smile.

"Hi Patty," he greeted, standing up.

Without a word they both headed for the sun room, leaving the girls alone. Victor kept his back to the girls as they conversed.

"Piper has a crush on Leo," Patty whispered.

"I know," Victor murmured.

'Well you need to do something," Patty exclaimed.

"Me?" Victor scoffed.

"Look, I don't want what happened between us to happen to Piper," Patty said softly.

"I'll try everything I can," Victor promised before they headed back into the living room.

The family spent the rest of the evening together when patty announced she had to go. With a few tearful hugs she disappeared. The girls collected the candles and put them back in their place. That Monday Piper found herself once more cornered by Cole at their lockers.

"What do you want?" Piper snapped.

"Will you please study with me? I've never taken one of her tests before," Cole begged.

"Can't you find someone else from class to study with?" she groaned as she slammed her locker door shut.

"I've asked other people but they are busy and I just thought since we di that project together that maybe…" he began.

"No…I did most of that project by myself," Piper snapped.

"Ok…so you're right. But come on. It's just one test. I swear I won't ask you to help any more after this," he said, grabbing her arm. Piper got a very bizarre feeling when he touched her. She imagined it would be akin to what Phoebe felt when she got a premonition.

"Fine. Just…stop begging. It's annoying," she grumbled. He let out a small laugh but nodded. They parted ways, agreeing to study at the Manor. She didn't entirely like the idea but she could always freeze him or kick him out at the very least.

That afternoon Cole got off the bus with the Halliwell sisters, his eye focusing on Phoebe. She was talking animatedly to Prue about her day. Piper would laugh on occasion. She felt strange talking about what had happened to them with this boy around.

"So where do you want to study?" Cole asked.

"Living room works," Piper answered.

"Can you study somewhere else, Piper? I have this stupid video I have to watch for English class and I need the TV," Prue interjected.

"Fine then we can study in the sun room," the middle child said.

"Hey that's my seat!" Prue shouted at Phoebe as she flopped down on the couch.

"It's not your seat. Besides you can see just fine from there," Phoebe answered. Prue glared but let it go. She popped the tape into the VCR and hit play. In the other room, Piper was quizzing Cole on their notes. She really hated these kinds of tests where how well you did depended on how well you took notes.

"Well at least we know we'll do fine on the section about our time period," Cole mused, flipping through the pages of his notes.

"She'll probably only have one or two questions from our presentation," Piper reminded him.

"You worry too much," he noted. She just ignored him. From the other room they heard a loud scream.

"Ew that's so gross. Why are they stoning her to death? She didn't do anything!" Phoebe squealed. Piper raced into the other room to see Prue ejecting the tape.

"What were you watching?" she demanded.

"We had to compare the movie and the story. I didn't say she should watch it," Prue muttered.

"How's the studying?" Prue asked, clearly changing the subject.

"He's so annoying," Piper groaned. Neither had realized that Phoebe had wandered into the other room with her school bag. She'd taken Piper's seat and was staring at her math homework. Cole noticed her sitting next to him but acted as if he didn't notice at first.

"I don't get this," she grumbled mostly to herself.

"Want some help?" he offered, making her jump a little.

"Are you good with division?" she asked. He smiled. He was good at dividing and conquering if that was what she meant.

"Yeah…I'm decent at it," he answered and leaned over to look at the page in her book. She pointed out the problems she had for homework and wrote the first one down on her paper. Together they went through each problem step by step until Phoebe understood it. Piper and Prue were watching from the doorway.

"I think we've studied enough," Piper announced, catching both Phoebe and Cole off guard.

"But we didn't even get through half of the presentations," Cole protested.

"I said I'd help you study. I did. I'm not going to do all of it for you," she spat and ushered him out of the house. She shut the door and leaned up against it.

"He seriously likes you," Prue sniggered.

"Don't say that!" Piper shot.

"I think he's nice," Phoebe interjected, holding her math book to her chest.

"And he's cute," she added with a smirk.

"You're too young to like boys," Prue stated.

"Not true. You liked Andy when you were ten. I read it in your diary," Phoebe answered.

"You read my diary when I was ten?" Prue exclaimed.

"I read it yesterday too," Phoebe giggled and sprinted up the stairs, Prue hot on her heels. Piper watched her sisters bicker, actually happy to hear their voices in the background. She wasn't sure why but she knew there was definitely something about Cole that she didn't like. She'd have to talk to Prue and get her opinion on the matter.

Outside the Manor Cole looked over his should at the door with a scow on his face. He should have tried to find a way to stay longer…to interact longer with Phoebe. With a huff he held his backpack with one hand and shimmered into nothing.


	8. Witch Genes

_Witch Genes_

Several weeks had passed since Balthazar's first attack and so far a second attempt had not been made. That didn't mean the girls relaxed any. The book stayed locked up in the cabinet when they were not using it. Cole had started coming over a couple times a week to tutor Phoebe in math. Presently the family was eating dinner.

"How is the tutoring going honey?" Victor asked.

"Good. I like Cole. He's nice and he makes it easy to understand," Phoebe answered. Piper made a gagging noise into her chicken.

"That's good. What about you, Piper?" he inquired.

"What about me? We did a project together…is that supposed to make us best friends?" the thirteen-year-old asked.

"No but he is new. I thought maybe you would try to help him out," her father replied. Piper just shrugged. Thankfully he hadn't bothered her about studying for any more tests.

The rest of dinner passed and Piper was glad to be finished. After helping with the dishes she headed up to her and Phoebe's room. She was just to the doorway when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Prue.

"I've been thinking,' Prue said, following Piper into the room.

"Thinking about what?" Piper asked, sitting down on her bed.

"A way to get that Cole kid to leave you alone," she answered. Piper couldn't help but smile.

"I'm listening,' the thirteen-year-old said.

"All you have to do is the next time he asks to try and spend time with you, tell him you have a boyfriend," Prue explained.

"But I don't…" Piper began.

"He doesn't have to know you're lying. Just tell him he goes to a different school," Prue retorted.

"I hope it works. I just wish he'd stop hanging around Pheebs. It makes me nervous," Piper sighed.

"Yeah it's kind of creepy," Prue agreed. Just then footsteps sounded outside and Phoebe walked in.

"What are you guys talking about?" she asked.

:"Nothing," Prue answered as she stood up.

"Sometimes I wish I was telepathic," Phoebe grumbled.

"Oh stop complaining. Your power is fine," Prue argued.

"I see things…big deal," she whined.

"Your visions have gotten us out of some pretty big jams, Pheebs," Piper reminded her.

"And besides, you can't complain. You're getting better with levitation," Prue added.

"I guess," the ten-year-old muttered.

In the Underworld, Cole was staring at a cave wall in boredom. He desperately wanted to go after the witches again but he knew he needed a way around the Book of Shadows. He also knew that they would be ready for him when he attacked again. He closed his eyes, trying to think. He was a powerful demon damn it. He should be able to best a bunch of witches. Suddenly a thought dawned on him.

"Get the book as Cole," he muttered to himself. Had anyone been listening they would have thought he was nuts, talking to himself in the third person. With that idea in mind, he resolved to snag the book the next time he went over to tutor Phoebe.

The following day Piper resolved to tell Cole about her fabricated boyfriend, if only to get him to leave her alone. She lingered at her locker before the first bell but didn't see him. As she headed for her first class, she had to admit to herself that she felt really stupid for waiting for him.

"Let him come to you," Prue had told her the day before. As she took her seat in history class that day, Prue's advice worked out. Cole walked in and stopped by her desk.

"Did you do the reading?" he asked her. She didn't even look at him. He let out a huff and took the desk next to hers.

"Well did you?" he repeated. She finally turned to look at him.

"Why does it matter to you if I did or not?" she asked. He shrugged.

"Just curious I guess," Cole muttered.

"Look…I know you're new and everything, but I don't need you following me around. I have a boyfriend," she said. She'd practiced it in her head all night and on the bus this morning.

"You do?" he asked, looking surprised.

"Yeah. He doesn't go to this school," she continued. He thought about it for a minute. Hadn't he overheard them talking about how Prue couldn't date until she was sixteen?

"Oh…sorry to bother you then," he murmured and got up, moving to his usual desk. Just s he pulled out his notebook the teacher walked in and started class. She handed back their tests on the group presentations. Piper smiled as she took her test, an A-. She would take that.

"Today we're moving on to a new unit dealing with genealogy," she explained, receiving several murmurs of confusion.

"isn't that like science stuff?" one student in the back asked.

"It can be but it can also deal with history. You will be doing a project worth twenty percent of your grade on your family history," she answered. The announcement of this new assignment put Piper on edge. Satisfied that her directions sheet and grading rubric would explain the assignment in more detail, the teacher passed them out to each row. Piper took her copy and scanned it. This was extensive. It could take weeks to get all of this information. She raised her hand.

"Yes, Piper?" the teacher called.

"Do we have to talk to all of these people?" she asked. It listed grandparents.

"As many people as you can," she answered. Before the teacher could field any more questions, the bell rang. Piper gathered her books and sprinted out of the room. Had she turned around she would have seen her own worried expression on Cole's face. He hung back until the rest of the class had left.

"Yes, Cole?" the teacher asked when he approached her.

"I don't think I can interview many of these people. It's just me and my mom. My dad's dead and I don't really have any other family," Cole explained. It wasn't really a lie. His father had been dead for almost a century and while his mother was still around they weren't really on speaking terms.

"Like I told the rest of the class, talk to whomever you can. But I'll keep that in mind," the teacher said.

That seemed to set Cole at ease a little. Perhaps it would be easier to fake the information than he thought. Lunch arrived just in time. Piper was going crazy. She cornered Prue before she could go find Andy.

"What? Andy and I have some things to talk about," Prue said, looking irritated that her sister had cornered her.

"Well I have something more pressing than first date plans," Piper hissed. She mouthed word 'witch' and Prue sighed. She picked up her tray and they grabbed a table in a secluded corner of the cafeteria.

"This better not be about Cole…I'm starting to think maybe you actually like him," Prue hissed.

"Ok…no it's not about him…and gross. I do not like the little freak," Piper spat.

"We have to do this huge project that's worth like twenty percent of our grade and I don't know what to do," Piper began.

"I didn't have your teacher so if you're going to ask if I had to it…the answer is no," Prue interrupted.

"Ok…but…it's a family tree," Piper said. Prue thought it over for a few minutes.

"So…it's not like we have to reveal we're witches," Prue stated.

"But it's just us and Dad. I mean sure we can summon Mom and Grams but how would I explain to my teacher that I interviewed my dead mother and grandmother?" Piper hissed.

"Wait…you have to interview people?" Prue asked and Piper nodded.

"And we get more points if we do more interviews," she added.

"That's a really stupid grading scale," Prue muttered. They fell into silence for a little while, eating their lunches. Prue knew Andy was probably looking for her but right now Piper needed her attention.

"We can talk to Dad tonight and see what he thinks. Ask Leo too," Prue suggested as they got up to throw their trash away. Prue spotted Andy approaching them.

"I'll see you after school, ok?" Prue addressed her sibling.

"Yeah. Sorry I took you away from your talk with Andy," Piper apologized.

"That's ok," she said.

"Hey Piper,' Andy greeted.

"Hi Andy…uh I'll see you later," Piper said and waved goodbye.

"I'm really sorry I skipped out on you. She just really needed some sisterly advice," Prue explained.

"It's ok…I know you are close. I understand," he said, wrapping his arm around her waist.

Over at the elementary school, Phoebe was sitting in the library staring at the book she'd picked up off the shelf. She liked having a free period at the end of the day. She usually used it as an extra study hall but today she didn't have a lot of homework. She'd even managed to her math homework on her own. Just as she turned the page she was hit was a premonition.

_She saw Cole standing in the attic, looking around. He appeared to be confused. He moved towards a trunk and only got a few steps when a very ugly looking demon shimmered in._

"_What are you doing?" Cole asked, acting as if he knew the demon._

"_Stopping you," the demon growled. He formed an energy ball and was about to throw it when Prue walked in. She flicked her wrist at the energy ball and sent it back at him. The demon exploded, leaving Col slightly singed._

"What was that?" she wondered aloud to herself. She looked up to see the librarian glaring at her for being loud.

"Sorry," she whispered and shut the book. She gathered the rest of her school things and tossed the library book into the bin by the door. She couldn't wait to tell her sisters what she saw.

In no time all three sisters found themselves on the bus. Prue could sense that Phoebe was about to burst but the ten-year-old hadn't said so much as 'hello' since they'd gotten on the bus. Finally the bus pulled up to their stop and they disembarked. Prue checked the mailbox to find nothing in it. She figured Victor had already gotten it as she and her sisters headed inside. They went straight to the kitchen to find Victor paying bills.

"Hi girls," he said, looking up. He saw the anxious looks on all of their faces and motioned for them to sit down.

'Something's going on. I may not be magical but I know when something is bothering you girls," he said before any of them could speak.

"I had a premonition," Phoebe said.

"I have to a family tree history project," Piper said at the same time and the two girls looked at each other.

"Hold on a minute. One at a time. Which is the more pressing issue?" Victor asked.

"When did you have a premonition?" Prue asked, a little late into the game.

"Today at school. I was in the library reading," Phoebe answered. While Phoebe was speaking Piper had pulled out the rubric on her project and pushed it towards Victor.

"What did you see?" a chorus of voices asked.

"Cole was in the attic…he was looking for something. Then this demon came in and tried to attack him but Prue vanquished him," Phoebe answered. Victor looked up from the paper.

"I think we've got bigger problems than a demon," he sighed.

"How is her project a bigger problem than an innocent?" Prue asked.

"Well…Piper can't exactly raise the dead," Victor said.

"Technically we can," Phoebe corrected him.

"But for all intents and purposes, for this project she can't," he countered.

"Well I agree with Phoebe. A demon attacking an innocent is more important than one lousy grade," Piper interjected.

"So do you have any idea when this demon is supposed to show up?" Prue asked. Before Phoebe could answer there was a knock on the front door. They all exchanged a curious look and stood up. As a unit they moved to the door and Victor pulled it open to reveal Cole standing on the front steps.


	9. Witch Genes Part Two

_Witch Genes Part Two_

The Halliwells stared at Cole in shock for a minute. They shouldn't have been surprised that he was there. It was one of the days he came to tutor Phoebe. Finally she spoke.

"Hi…uh…I did my math earlier in the library. So…I don't need your help today," she said hastily.

"Are you sure? I could maybe check it over," he offered, trying to get through the door. Prue looked at Piper and then to Phoebe. Did they want him here? He was after all their innocent.

"Girls, why don't you let him in. It might be a good idea for him to check over Phoebe's homework," Victor suggested.

"Can't you do it, Dad?" Phoebe asked. He fixed her with a stern look but she stepped back, pulling the door open wider. Cole hesitated for a fraction of a second before walking through the doorway. Prue shut the door and watched as Cole walked towards the living room. Victor left his daughters in the foyer.

"Whatever you do, don't let him in the attic," Prue whispered.

"Duh…why would we let anyone in the attic?" Piper hissed.

"Just be careful," she sighed. Phoebe gave her sisters a pleading look as she went to join Cole in the other room.

"I think we should go make sure the book is safe," Prue murmured. Piper nodded and they headed up the stairs to the second landing. Prue walked in and snatched it from the cabinet.

"Can we take it to my room? I think it might help me with this stupid assignment," Piper asked.

"Sure…care to share what you're going to do with it?" Prue replied as they headed into Piper's room.

"I was looking through it the other day and I thought I saw a spell…a way to summon Melinda Warren," she began to explain.

"You want to summon our ancestor…for a school project?" Prue scoffed.

"Do you have any better ideas?" Piper spat.

"Well…no. But what does Leo think?" she asked.

"I don't know. I haven't asked him yet," Piper answered.

"Leo!" she called out. It took a minute for him to respond. Finally blue and white orbs appeared. Leo looked at the girls.

"Is everything alright? Did Balthazar attack again?" he asked, seeing the book in Piper's lap.

"No…I just…have a school project that I wanted your advice on," Piper answered. It sounded so silly and foolish now that she was asking him for his help.

"Ok," he answered, looking a little confused. He knew the Elders wouldn't be too happy about him being called away from homework.

"I have this big history paper on my family tree. And we have to do a bunch of interviews of our family members. I was thinking of summoning Melinda Warren," she rambled.

"How would summoning Melinda Warren help?" he questioned.

"I think she just wants to know something about our family history," Prue tired to clarify. Piper nodded her head in agreement with her sister.

"Well if I remember correctly, there is a spell in the book. But you will need Phoebe to do it," he stated.

"Do you think you could help us set it up?" Piper asked, blushing a little.

"Sure. Where do you wan to do it?" he asked.

"Well I think we should wait until our other project is finished," Prue said cryptically.

"I think we can tell him about our innocent, Prue. He is our whitelighter," Piper muttered.

"Innocent?" he questioned.

"Phoebe had a vision of Cole in the attic and some demon was going to attack him," Prue said.

"And in Phoebe's vision, Prue vanquishes the demon. So as long as we keep Cole out of the attic, the demon shouldn't go after him," Piper rationalized.

"What was he doing in the attic?" Leo asked.

"Uh…we don't know," Piper admitted.

"Have you tried to identify the demon?" he continued and both girls shook her head.

"What is Phoebe doing?" was his next question.

"Downstairs…Cole showed up and Dad wouldn't let us kick him out," Prue answered.

"Let's go see if we can figure out what's going on," Leo suggested. Piper stuff the book under her pillows and they headed downstairs. Phoebe and Cole were just staring at each other, not sure what to say. He'd checked her homework and it had all been correct. He didn't want to leave yet. He needed to try and get the book again. They both looked up when footsteps approached.

"Hey Leo," Phoebe greeted.

"This is Cole. He tutors me in math," she explained.

"Hi," Leo said. Cole merely nodded.

"How's the math going?" Prue asked.

"We're all done," Phoebe answered.

"Ok…well I guess you can go home now. Don't want to cut into your own homework time," Prue said rudely.

"Yeah…we have that big history paper to work on," Piper added.

"Can I use the bathroom first?" he asked. Prue stepped aside so he could pass. Once he was inside he shimmered up to the attic.

"Come on, we need to do something upstairs," Piper said, dragging Phoebe along.

"What? And you didn't have to be so rude," the ten-year-old snapped.

"We need to cast a Power of Three spell," Prue answered. Leo was about to orb up to the attic to gather the necessary ritual items to summon Melinda when they heard a loud crash from the attic. The sisters exchanged a nervous look and sprinted for the stairs.

"Stay with the book," Piper shouted at Leo. He nodded. He just hoped they were prepared for whatever evil had tried to get into the Manor this time. The three sisters skidded into the attic to find, Cole crouching behind one of the newly repaired chairs. The demon from Phoebe's premonition was standing over him.

"Hey ugly," Prue called. The demon spun around.

"What are you doing here?" he growled.

"We live here. And that means you are trespassing," Prue answered. She squinted at the demon and sent him flying.

"Piper now!" she shouted. Piper flicked her wrists and the demon blew up, leaving a pile of ash on the floor.

"What…just happened?" Cole asked, faking confusion.

"We just saved you," Prue answered.

"What were you doing up here anyways?" Phoebe asked.

"I…heard something and got turned around," he offered. It was a weak excuse at best. He knew it but he hoped they'd be stupid enough to buy it.

"I doubt that. Look, just…go home. And if you tell anyone what you saw…" Prue threatened.

"I won't say word," he swore and headed back downstairs. He had to figure out who had sent the demon after him. If it had been the Triad he would not be very happy.

"Ok…innocent saved, demon vanquished. Can we get back to my problems please?" Piper asked. Her sisters nodded and they began to gather the bowl and candles that they would need to summon their ancestor. Once they had double checked the book, they sat in a circle around the bowl.

"It says we need to a drop of our blood," Prue said, producing an athame. Piper cringed as did Phoebe.

"Oh come on. It will only hurt a little," she said. Piper held her hand out and covered her eyes. She winced as the blade slit her skin. Phoebe gave a similar reaction. Prue bit her cheek as she donated her own blood. Together they recited the spell from the book.

"Melinda Warren blood of our blood, our Great, Great, Great, Great, Great, Great Grandmother, we summon thee," the recited. Right before their eyes. A young woman with blond hair and a gentle face appeared before them. She was wearing a simple dress.

"Blessed be, my daughters," she greeted, smiling at the girls before.

"Wow…it's really her," Phoebe whispered.

"I'm Piper," Piper introduced.

"I'm Phoebe," the youngest of the three greeted.

"I'm Prue," the eldest greeted with a small wave.

"Oh my beautiful girls. It has really come to pass. The Charmed Ones have arrived," Melinda breathed, smiling broadly.

"I need your help," Piper stated, standing up. They led her downstairs to the kitchen. Victor walked in.

"Is everything alright…who is this," he asked.

"Everything is fine. And this is Melinda Warren," Prue answered with a smirk.

"Melinda…Book of Shadows Melinda?" he asked and all three of his girls nodded.

"She's going to help me with my paper," Piper answered.

"Paper?" Melinda asked.

"Here sit down. I'll explain everything," the middle Halliwell stated. Melinda took a seat a the kitchen table and Piper gathered the assignment and her notebook. Piper went about explaining the assignment to her ancestor. Melinda nodded a lot.

"I was hoping you could help me. I need an interesting family story and I thought maybe…you would have one," she said, pen poised over the paper to take notes.

"Of course I want to you, Piper. A story…" Melinda began, tapping her cheek in thought.

"You girls know how your legacy began don't you?" she asked. All three girls shook their heads in the negative.

"Well. It was 1692 and I was living in Salem, Massachusetts with my daughter, Prudence," she began. Prue smiled at that statement.

"It was a very dangerous time for witches and young women who had not married," she continued.

"I know. A lot of innocent people were burned at the stake for being accused of witchcraft," Piper interrupted. Melinda nodded.

"My lover, Matthew Tat, declared me a witch and I was to burn. You see, he was a warlock…a very powerful one. He had copied my powers and used them to keep me from taking our child and leaving Salem," she sighed.

"So he took your powers?" Phoebe asked, looking baffled.

"Not exactly. I still had them but they would not work against Matthew," Melinda answered.

"So why didn't you use your powers to free yourself?" Prue asked.

"I had to protect my daughter. If I used my powers to save myself that would prove I was a witch and my daughter would be burned as well" she murmured.

"And we wouldn't exist," Piper breathed. Melinda nodded. Piper scribbled down notes rapidly in her notebook.

"I never knew that's why you were burned," Prue whispered.

"It's done. It had to happen so your destiny could be set in motion," Melinda assured them all.

"Thank you," Phoebe said, wrapping her arms around her ancestor.

"You're very welcome girls," she said.

"Does that help you understand our family?" she asked Piper.

"Yeah…I think I can write a really good paper now," Piper answered, getting up to hug Melinda as well. Prue joined in and Victor watched with a smile on his face. It was then that he noticed Leo walk in.

"You have something to do with this?" he asked the whitelighter.

"It was Piper's idea, I just pointed her in the right direction on how to get it done," Leo answered, looking up at the ceiling.

"Girls…I have to go," he said. Piper gave him a sad look as he disappeared in orbs.

"Alright…Piper do you have everything you need from Melinda for your project?" Victor asked, eager to get the girls' ancestor out of the house in case a demon tried to attack.

"Yeah…but Dad it's ok. Melinda has all of our powers. And I don't' think any demons will be attacking any time soon," Piper answered. Prue had suddenly grown quiet.

"What is bothering you, Prue?" Melinda asked. Prue couldn't help but crack a small half smile. It was strange to have a mother's intuition around.

"I just…you said Matthew was a warlock…and the father of your daughter," Prue began and Melinda nodded.

"Well…does that make us a little bit evil?" she questioned. Deep down the other two girls had been wondering the same thing.

"It is a very small amount of evil that has been broken down over the centuries. It may still be there but it is not something to worry about," Melinda answered.

"Now come. I think it is time to return me. You girls bring me great joy to know that my legacy has been carried on and the prophecy fulfilled," she said, giving each girl a kiss on the cheek as they headed upstairs.

They gathered around the bowl in Piper's room and took hands.

"Melinda Warren, blood of our blood. We release you," the chanted and in a wisp of smoke she was gone.


	10. Family Firsts

_Family Firsts_

Several weeks had passed and Piper had done her best to avoid Cole. A part of her was worried that he would spill their secret but another part just wanted nothing to do with him. She wandered into history class and took her seat. Cole slunk in just before the bell. They didn't even make eye contact. Shortly the teacher stood up to collect the papers. Piper pulled hers from her binder and handed it in. She caught a glimpse of how nervous Cole looked as he handed his assignment in.

"I hope you all learned some interesting facts about your families and how each person's family can bring a unique and different perspective to looking at what we study," the teacher said, placing the papers on her desk.

The rest of the class period was spent going over the material that would be on the test at the end of the week. Finally the bell rang and Piper hurried to get out of the classroom.

"Hey," a voice called to her. She closed her eyes to try and control the sharp remark she had prepared. She kept walking, forcing Cole to run to catch up.

"What?" she asked.

"You think she's going to grade those papers really hard?" he asked as they reached their lockers.

"Maybe," Piper responded. She could tell he was stalling.

"Look whatever you have to say…just say it," she spat.

"I just wanted to tell you that I kept my promise. I haven't told anyone about…what happened," he said. It was the truth…mostly. Those he had told already knew they were witches.

"As nice as that sounds, I'm a little unable to believe you. And I want you to stay away from Phoebe. We can help her from now on," Piper said slamming her locker and heading fo the cafeteria. She found Andy and Prue seated at a tale in the corner. Apparently Cole had followed Piper in because Prue spotted her and waved at her frantically.

"Hey," Prue greeted once Piper had joined them.

"Hi," Piper stated, sitting down.

"You ok?" Andy asked. Piper gave him a small smile.

"Yeah…I handed in that history assignment. And then….he cornered me," Piper grumbled, nodding her head in Cole's generation direction.

"What did he want?" Prue asked before Andy could get a word in edgewise.

"Just wanted to say he won't be tutoring Phoebe anymore," Piper lied. She'd tell Pure what he really said later.

"Why not?" Andy inquired.

"Because I told him to stay away from her. He really creeps me out," Piper answered.

"Guess you can do that as older sisters. But what if your Dad disagrees?" he asked.

"He won't. It's not like he was paying Cole or anything," Prue interjected.

"Hey, I have to get going. I promised some of the guys I'd throw the ball around before the bell rings," Andy stated after a brief silence. He and Prue shared a swift kiss and he headed towards the doors.

"So you're kissing now?" Piper inquired.

"So what. It's not like we won't be dating," Prue answered.

"So what did Cole really tell you," she probed.

"He told me that he hadn't told anyone about what happened in the attic," Piper answered.

"Somehow I think he's probably lying. But the Cleaners haven't shown up and the Elders are striking us down with bolts of lightning," Prue mumbled.

"Well we'll just have to make sure that he stays away from Phoebe," she concluded as the bell rang. The sisters stood up and dumped their trash.

"See you after school," Prue called, giving her sibling a wave.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully for all three Halliwell girls. Phoebe hadn't had any more premonitions during class and she was actually understanding her math assignments more. She knew her sisters wouldn't want Cole to continue tutoring her. They were overprotective of her, especially since he'd seen them use magic. But liked his company. He was a good teacher too. She was pulled from her thoughts by the ending bell. She gathered her books and went to wait for the bus. When she got on she found her sisters sitting in the back. When they saw her, both averted their gazes.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Don't be mad," Prue began.

"We just…we asked Cole not to tutor you. We can help you if you need it. We just don't want him near the Book," Piper continued.

"I know you want to keep me safe," Phoebe began.

"It's not just you, Pheebs. It's our magical inheritance…it's our lives. If he tells even one person and it gets around, who knows what could happen," Prue interrupted.

"I know. I get it…I just kind of liked having him around. He was nice and a good teacher," Phoebe sighed. Prue and Piper pulled her into a lopsided hug.

"We're sorry," they both apologized.

"It's ok," Phoebe murmured.

The bus dropped them off and they found Victor sitting at the kitchen table. He looked up when all three girls walked in.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"We sort of…" Piper started to say.

"We fired Cole," Prue stated bluntly.

"You did?" he asked and they nodded. He looked to Phoebe.

"It's ok, Dad. I'm getting better at math and I can always ask Prue or Piper for help. It's just…with that demon that was after him, we don't want to risk him being h ere," Phoebe explained in one breath.

"As long as you girls are sure," Victor muttered. With that they dispersed, heading upstairs to do homework.

Down in the Underworld, Cole shimmered in, tossing his bag on a nearby rock. He knew his history paper was mostly made up and fabricated. He'd attempted to find his mother but to no avail. Just as he sunk onto a folding chair he'd put in the cave, a fire ball came whizzing by his head. It missed by mere inches. He was on his feet instantaneously.

"Who is there?" he demanded, a fireball of his own forming.

"You little traitor," a voice called. It was a familiar voice but one he hadn't heard in years.

"Mom?" he asked as the figure stepped into view. His brow furrowed at her appearance.

"I heard you were looking for me," his mother stated.

"It's a little late," Cole muttered.

"And since when am I traitor?" h e spat.

"You're working for the Triad," she hissed. Cole merely shrugged. What did it matter? They were the biggest influential force in the Underworld. She should be proud that her son had been chosen to aid them in their mission of destroying the Charmed Ones.

"You should have been aligned with the Source," she continued, moving closer to her son.

"The Source has been dead for five years," Cole remarked. They fell into silence, each watching the other closely. He narrowed his eyes at her.

"It was you. You sent that demon after me," he snapped.

"I had to stop you somehow," she retorted.

"I was gaining the witches' trust," he countered.

"And thanks to you, now they won't let me into the Manor," he added with a glare.

"If the Triad wants the Charmed Ones dead, they should do it themselves, not recruit a child," she grumbled. Small parts of Cole longed to simply stop arguing and hug his mother. But that part was very small. It belonged to his human half…his weak half.

"I can do the job," he growled, turning his back to her. She didn't respond. Instead she walked closer and placed a hand on his shoulder. He slowly turned around to look at her. Before he could help himself he hugged her. She was a little shocked at the gesture but did not pull away.

"I knew the Charmed Ones wouldn't let a demon harm an innocent," she whispered. He smiled.

"Just don't do it again or I will have to vanquish you," he stated firmly. She laughed a little but nodded.

"Why were you looking for me?" she finally asked.

"A project for school on family history," he answered. He sat down in his chair and she sat on a rock across from him as he filled her in.

Several days later, Prue celebrated her sixteenth birthday. The family sat around the dinner table. Leo had joined them as he had done since he'd first met them.

"Happy Birthday, Prue," they all chimed. She laughed a little but smiled broadly. She was just about to cut into the cake when there was a sharp knock at the door. She looked to Victor and he nodded. She stood up and headed for the front of the house. She pulled it open to find Andy standing there.

"Hi," she greeted.

"Happy Birthday," he said, leaning across the threshold and giving her a kiss.

"Come on in. We were about to cut the cake," she said. She led him into the dining room and he pulled up a chair.

"Come on, cut the cake," Phoebe whined, eying the dessert anxiously.

"Relax, Pheebs. I'm getting to it," Prue snapped, picking up the cake knife. She cut right down the center and portioned off six pieces. She served everyone else first before partaking of her piece.

"So what did you get her?" Piper asked of Andy. He set his cake down and pulled out an envelope. Prue took it and opened it. She read the card and looked at Andy, blushing.

"Thanks," she said, smiling. He then turned to Victor.

"I got tickets to see a movie tonight," he stated. Both Piper and Phoebe let out gasps.

"Since tomorrow is Saturday…I think you can go to the movies. But I want her home by ten thirty," Victor answered. Andy nodded and Prue let out a squeal.

"Thanks, Dad," she said, trying to climb over the table to give him a hug. Victor just nodded at his eldest daughter. Shortly, Prue and Andy left for the movies, leaving Victor and the younger two girls to clean up. Leo had been called away by another charge just as they set to cleaning the dishes.

"You really let her go out on a date," Phoebe gushed.

"I told her when she turned sixteen, she could date. I kept my promise," their father answered.

"Will that rule apply to us too?" Piper asked.

"When that time comes, yes. It will," Victor responded. He had a sneaking suspicion why she'd asked the question. He would have to have a talk with Leo at some point in the near future.

"I hope they have fun on their date," Piper mused as they finished up the dishes.

Several hours later, Prue and Andy emerged from the movie theater, both of them beaming. The movie had been alright. It was the fact that they could call it a date made them both extremely happy.

"So what did you think of our first date?" Andy asked.

"The best," she answered, leaning into his arm.

"I'm glad you had a good time," Andy said as they approached his car. Just as she was about to open the passenger side door, Andy grabbed her hand and pulled her close. They shared a kiss as he pulled a small box from his pocket.

"I got you something," he murmured, holding it out. She opened it to find a slender silver bracelet with their initials engraved in it.

"It's beautiful," she gushed, slipping it on. She pulled him into a bear hug for a minute, just enjoying his arms around her. When they broke apart, they couldn't help but stare at the bracelet. They both admired it for a minute before he checked his watch.

"We'd better get going. Don't want to get you home after ten thirty," he said. She nodded and climbed into the car. The drive back to the Manor was silent. But it was the good kind of silence. When he finally pulled up to the curb, they turned to look at each other.

"Happy Birthday, Prue," he said again, kissing her on the lips one last time before she got out and headed for the door.


	11. Christmas Cole Part 1

_Christmas Cole Part 1_

The weather had gotten brisk in San Francisco. It wasn't really cold but it had definitely cooled off since mid November. Piper was sitting in the living room, reading a book she'd bought for three bucks at the book fair. She didn't often get the chance to read for pleasure. No matter what Prue said, reading the Book of Shadows was not Piper's definition of pleasure reading. Just as she turned the page, orbs jingled next to her. She looked up to see Leo.

"Hi," she said, putting a piece of paper in the binding to keep her place.

"Hi," he replied, sitting down next to her. Piper tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. She and Leo had been avoiding what she was feeling…what they were both feeling.

"Can we talk?" he asked. Her stomach dropped. He wanted to talk about…them.

"Ok," she answered.

"I know we've been avoiding…" he started to say.

"I just don't want the Elders to take you away again. With Balthazar around…it would hurt us more than help us," Piper interrupted him.

"I think right now we just need to acknowledge what we are feeling," he said, choosing his words carefully. She was still after all only a child.

"I guess we can do that. Dad would freak out anyways. I mean he nearly had a heart attack and Prue is sixteen," Piper muttered. Neither of them heard the footsteps on the stairs.

"Hi, Leo," Prue said, looking surprised to see their whitelighter there.

"Hi, Prue. How are you?" he replied.

"Good…glad that Balthazar hasn't been around. I can actually enjoy my newfound social life," she said with a smile.

"Prue! Where is the Book?" Phoebe yelled from upstairs. Prue rolled her eyes.

"In my hands. Why?" she shouted back. The bellowing back and forth drew Victor from the sun room.

"What's all the shouting about?" he asked.

"Nothing. Phoebe just wants the Book," Prue answered.

"Well do you have to shout about it from two floors?" he sighed. Phoebe thundered down the stairs and snatched the thick tome from her sister.

"Why do you need it?" Prue asked.

"I just feel like looking. You're not the only one who owns it," Phoebe answered, rolling her eyes.

"She has a point," Piper added from the couch.

Far below the bickering siblings, Cole was being summoned by the Triad. He knew they weren't happy with him. Ever since his mother had sent that demon after him and almost exposed him, he hadn't been able to get near any of the sisters. He stopped at the entrance to the cave, waiting to be summoned.

"Enter," one of the demons called. He took a deep breath and walked in, immediately coming face-to-face with the trio of demons.

"What have you to report?" the center demon asked.

"I…am having more trouble than I thought I would regaining the witches' trust," he admitted, eyes cast downward.

"How much trouble?" one of the others questioned. Cole looked up.

"I haven't been able to get near them. Piper and Prue keep a close eye on Phoebe. They make sure she stays away from me," he answered. The young demon figured if they were going to vanquish him, he'd look them in the eyes when they did it.

"I suggest you find a way to remedy the situation, Balthazar," the first demon hissed.

"Before we find you have outlived your usefulness," the third added.

"What do you suggest?" Cole asked, reverting to his demonic form. He felt powerful now. He could take them on if he had to.

"Take whatever demonic help you want. Kidnap one of them. Lure them to the Underworld where their calls will fall on deaf ears. Their whitelighter won't be able to save them," the second Triad answered.

"I will not let you down," Cole said, his voice deep and gruff as he shimmered out.

"Perhaps we were wrong to trust him," the third Triad sighed.

"WE will give him one last chance before we do this ourselves," the first demon replied and together they disappeared.

Cole wandered around the Underworld, trying desperately to think of how he could kidnap one of the Charmed Ones without getting caught in the process. As he roamed the intricate catacombs, he stumbled upon a group of shape shifters.

"What where you're going," one of them snapped, not realizing who he was.

"I think I could use your help," Cole said, smiling.

"You're going to serve the Triad," he continued. He motioned for them to come closer as he explained his plan. Happening upon these particular demons had sparked a plan in his brain. He just had to make sure it was executed properly. He would wait until the last day of school before vacation.

A day or two passed and school was almost ready to let out for the Christmas holiday. Piper was doing her best to not think about Leo. Ever since their little talk and mutual agreement to acknowledge what they were feeling, she couldn't stop wondering if he was going to disappear again. So it was no surprise that Prue pulled her aside as they waited for the bus. Andy's parents had grounded him for the weekend. He'd been late on curfew. Prue had managed to sneak in just in time.

"You still worried about Leo?" she whispered.

"I guess so. It's just complicated. I mean, why can't witches and whitelighters be together?" Piper answered. She pulled her coat around her shoulders.

"I don't know. It does seem like a stupid rule," Prue agreed just as the bus pulled up. They boarded and the bus pulled away, heading for the middle school. From behind a clump of bushes, Cole watched them. Tomorrow was going to be the day he would execute his plan. He would not fail the Triad again. He couldn't fail them another time. Looking around him, he shimmered out of view.

That afternoon, all three girls were curled up in the attic, sorting their magical supplies. They hadn't had to do much demon fighting but some of the herbs had started to go bad from the change in the weather.

"Add ginger root to the list," Prue told Piper. Piper dutifully scribbled it down.

"Where are we going to find all of this stuff anyways?" Phoebe asked.

"Leo said he knows somebody who sells this kind of stuff," Prue answered.

"Do you think Dad would let us summon Mom and Grams for Christmas Day?" the tne-year-old asked, sounding hopeful.

"Maybe. I don't see why not," Piper answered.

"Well…I think Andy might come over," Prue muttered. She received a disapproving look from her youngest sibling. Having a boyfriend was definitely complicating their lives as witches. She wanted to have Andy over a lot more than she had before.

"So he can come over in the afternoon. We can summon Grams and Mom in the morning…for presents and stuff," Piper said, trying to reach a compromise.

"Ok," Phoebe agreed.

"Sure," Prue answered.

Phoebe tossed a broken potion vial in the trash. Just as her fingers let go, she was hit with a premonition; her first in weeks.

_It was disjointed and mostly dark. She could see herself lying on he ground. She saw three tall figures standing over her, inverted pentacles on long black robes. She cried out for her sisters, for Leo but nothing happened._

As quickly as it had come, the vision was gone. She looked over at her sisters and they had the telltale question in their eyes, 'what did you see?'

"I…I'm not really sure where I was. It was dark and there were three figures…demons I think, standing over me," she answered.

"I tried to cry out for help but no one answered," she added.

"Sounds like you could have been like in a cave…far away from people," Piper offered.

"Or maybe in the Underworld. We couldn't get to her there. Neither could Leo," Prue suggested.

"Great…I hate the Underworld. It probably has to do with Balthazar," Phoebe groaned. Couldn't they at least have a demon free Christmas this year?

"We'll make sure we keep a close eye on you," Prue said, squeezing Phoebe's shoulder comfortingly.

"Thanks," Phoebe murmured.

That night she snuck the Book of Shadows under her covers. She waited until Piper was sleep before turning on her flashlight and peering at the pages, one at a time. She was so engrossed with trying to find the demons from her vision that she didn't hear Victor walk in or pull the covers from over her head.

"Phoebe, it's after eleven. What are you doing?" he whispered so as not to wake Piper.

"I can't sleep," she answered, looking guilty.

"Is it the premonition?" he asked. She nodded.

"Prue told me about it," he added offhandedly.

"I want to find the demons but they aren't in here," she muttered.

"Try to get some sleep, Pheebs," he told her, taking the book and flashlight from her arms. Phoebe let out a yawn and pulled the covers back up.

"Night," he said, kissing the top of her head.

"Night, Dad," she sighed, curling up against her pillow.

The last day of school before Christmas break arrived and dragged by for all the students. Cole was walking through the hallway when he saw Prue. He quickly ducked out of sight. He couldn't wait for the end of the school day. He would finally prove to the Triad and the rest of the Underworld that he could take down the Charmed Ones.

"Can you believe we have homework over Christmas?" Andy griped as their last class of the day came to a close.

"It's one stupid assignment. We can do it today and get it done with," Prue said, linking arms with him.

"My place or yours?" he asked.

"How about yours," she said with a smile. If Balthazar did in fact attack again, she didn't want to risk an innocent being there.

"Sounds like a plan," he said, leaning over to kiss her.

"Get a room," Piper called from behind them.

"Grow up," Prue retorted. Piper just shook her head and grabbed her bag from her locker. The trio proceeded out to the bus amid the throng of people. Cole watched from his position behind the bushes. With a shimmer two shape shifters appeared behind him.

"We're ready," one of them said, causing Cole to turn around.

"Good. Lure the witches away," he instructed.

"And what exactly are you going to do?" the second demon asked.

"Leave that to me," the young demon snapped.

One of the shape shifters formed an energy ball, bouncing it high in the air. Prue noticed it and tugged on Piper's sleeve. Andy had gotten into a conversation with some of the football players so the sisters managed to slip away unnoticed.

"What?" Piper asked until Prue pointed out the energy ball.

"Great," Piper whined. Prue dragged her sister off in the direction of the demon. Just as they got close, two more shape shifters appeared from behind. They each grabbed one of the girls around their waist.

"Put me down!" Prue protested. She managed to send one of the demons flying into a nearby tree. Piper continued to struggle but to no avail. She watched in horror as the two demons that had lured them away from the crowd shape shifted into them and shimmered away.

"Oh, no…Phoebe!" Prue cried but it didn't help. The next thing she knew she was lying on the ground, barely conscious.

Phoebe waited for the bus to arrive, checking her watch anxiously. She wanted to get home. Knowing she could very well be kidnapped by demons make her edgy. She didn't notice the person standing behind her until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She spun around to see Cole.

"What do you want?" she asked nervously.

"Your sisters told me to walk you home because they had to stay after school," he lied.

"They wouldn't tell you that," she spat, trying to walk away but he gripped her arm.

"Let go of me," she protested. Why weren't any of the other students helping her?

"Well they did," he said, dragging her along. Just then, shape shifter Prue and Piper appeared.

"I told you they wouldn't let you walk me home," she snapped, yanking her arm from his grip.

"Actually, Phoebe, we did," shape shifter Piper said, flashing the younger girl a sardonic smile.

"You're not my sisters," she said, and made a run for it. She didn't make it far as she fell to the ground, her shoulder aching violently. She felt a rough hand on her back and they disappeared.


	12. Christmas Cole Part 2

_Christmas Cole Part 2_

When Phoebe's eyes opened she was lying on the ground. She looked around her and heart fell to the pit of her stomach. Her premonition was coming true. She searched around wildly for the three robed demons but they were nowhere to be seen. Whoever was guarding her must have seen her move because a voice spoke.

"She woke up," the voice said. Phoebe heard footsteps and looked up to see Balthazar looming over her.

"Hello witch," he sneered. She swallowed, trying to keep calm. She was still alive, that was a good thing.

"What do you want with me?" she asked.

"What every demon wants but is too scared to do anything about…kill you," the demon cackled. In that moment, she wished she had a useful active power. What could levitation do right now?

With a smirk on his lips, Balthazar turned and walked away, leaving the shape shifters to keep watch over her. He shimmered out behind a high cave wall and reappeared before the Triad.

"Well?" they asked in unison.

"I've captured the youngest, Phoebe. Her sisters will try to come rescue her," he answered.

"That is not good enough, Balthazar. We want the witches dead," the Triad on the left boomed angrily.

"When the other witches get here, they will find their sister dead. Consumed by grief they will be easy to finish off," he snapped back.

"We will see to it that this does not fail," the Triad in the center grumbled and they disappeared. Balthazar sighed and reverted back to his human form. He would have to kill Phoebe. He could do that, right? She was just a witch, nothing more.

Back on the school grounds, Prue and Piper slowly sat up. Prue looked down to see her arm bleeding. Piper had a gash on her forehead and groaned loudly as she tried to stand up.

"You ok?" Prue asked, struggling to her feet as well.

"Where'd they go?" Piper rasped.

"They got away," Prue answered angrily.

"They got Phoebe," Piper gasped, not caring that blood was dangerously close to dripping down her nose.

"Leo!" Prue called, holding her injured arm gingerly. She got no response. She looked a Piper and bit the inside of her lip.

"Leo?" she called again, louder this time. Thankfully he heard this call and appeared before them. He looked around and was about to open his mouth to say something about being on school grounds when he noticed their condition.

"What happened?" he asked, holding a hand over each girl.

"We got jumped," Prue muttered.

"By shape shifters. We think they got Phoebe," Piper answered.

"Let's get you back to the Manor," he said, reaching out to take their hands. Prue shook her head.

"I have to tell Andy I can't study this afternoon," she said. Piper rolled her eyes.

"Forget Andy! Our sister is who knows where in the Underworld and all you care about is your boyfriend," she shot angrily.

"Well I'm sorry but I can't just blow him off," Prue spat back.

"Sure you can. This is more important, Prue," the younger of the two replied.

"Andy is important too," Prue said.

"More important than saving Phoebe's life?" Piper asked in a small voice. Prue sighed. Piper had a point.

"Let's go," Prue murmured and took Leo's hand. Together they disappeared, rematerializing in the attic. Piper rushed to the cabinet and pulled out a map and scrying crystal. Prue picked up the Book of Shadows and began to flip through it, not really sure what she was looking for.

"Scrying won't work…she's in the Underworld, remember," Prue muttered when she heard an aggravated sigh escape Piper's lips.

"Well it's worth a try. What would you suggest then?" Piper snapped. She knew she shouldn't still be mad at Prue for thinking of Andy….but she was. Perhaps it was partly because she didn't want to lose her baby sister.

"Just that shape shifters are easy to vanquish. Potion or blowing them up. But they've got to be hired guns," Prue answered, standing up and bringing the book over to the table where Piper sat.

"My guess is it's Balthazar," Piper stated. Neither had realized that Leo had left the room. He had gone down to the kitchen to find Victor sorting through the mail. Victor looked up, a little startled to see Leo.

"I brought the girls home," the whitelighter began.

"Oh…they couldn't take the bus?" Victor asked.

"Phoebe's gone missing," Leo blurted.

"Are you saying whatever that thing was before took my daughter?" Victor demanded.

"Prue and Piper believe Balthazar could be behind it," Leo answered, sitting down at the table. Victor ran a hand through his hair and took a seat as well.

"I found Phoebe last night…reading the Book under the covers. She said she was trying to find the demons from her vision," Victor admitted.

"Did she say what they looked like?" Leo asked.

"Something about inverted pentacles. It was late," Victor said.

"I think I know what they need to look for," Leo said, jumping up from the chair. With that Leo orbed back upstairs.

"The Triad," he said, causing both girls to look at him with raised brows.

"The what?" Piper asked.

"They are a trio of very powerful demons," Leo answered, using his own powers to turn the pages in the book until it came to land on the page about the Triad.

"They look as powerful as the Source," Prue muttered mostly to herself.

"They are very upper level demons, extremely hard to vanquish. Not even the Source could do it," Leo informed them.

"What would they want with Phoebe?" Piper asked.

"Demons have tried to turn us evil before. But it didn't work," Prue rambled.

"What if they want to…kill her?" Piper gulped.

"We need to find her before that happens," Prue said firmly. In the back of her mind she could hear her subconscious telling her that finding Phoebe could be part of the Triad's plan.

"We could try the to call a lost witch spell. I mean, technically Phoebe is lost," Piper suggested, trying to think positively.

"We could try," Prue agreed and set about gathering the necessary elements. Once all had been set up, they joined hands and began to recite the spell from the book.

"Power of the witches' rise. Course unseen across the skies. Come to us, we call you near. Come to us and settle here," they began. Prue picked up the small ceremonial knife and pricked her finger, letting a drop fall into the bowl. Piper followed suit, wincing more than her sister as the blood joined her sister's.

"Blood to blood, I summon thee. Blood to blood, return to me," they finished the spell. Nothing happened. They looked at each other in confusion.

"Why didn't anything happen?" Piper asked, looking anxiously over at Leo.

"Balthazar could be blocking your powers," he answered with a shrug. He was trying to sense her. His reach only extended so far into the Underworld however. He'd lost her signal a while ago but he couldn't let the girls down.

"What if we wrote a spell to take us to her," Prue suggested, reaching for a pen and paper.

"You'll need to be ready. The Triad is probably expecting you to try and safe her," Leo reminded them.

"We'll be ready," Prue said defensively.

Together, she and Piper began to write a spell. It wasn't anything complex or extravagant. They just hoped it would work. Prue looked it over one last time before setting the pen down.

"I think it's done," she announced. She gave her younger sister a look that asked 'you ready?' and Piper nodded.

"Tell Dad we'll be back as soon as we can," Prue said. Leo stepped back, giving them some space. She held the paper out in front of her and took Piper's hand.

"Power of the witches rise, course unseen across the skies. Where a sister kept from home, let us find where evils roam," the chanted. They were caught up in a swirl of white light. They appeared in the Underworld. It looked like a nondescript cave.

"Phoebe?" Prue called out softly. She got no answer.

"How do we even know we're anywhere near her?" Piper hissed in her sister's ear.

"Well if we're not then we'll just have to torture whoever we have to in order to find her," Prue answered.

A few caves away, Phoebe was trying inch closer to the opening. If she could sneak around the corner and stay out of sight, she might be able to make a run for it. Unfortunately, the shape shifters were more attentive than she'd counted on.

"Where do you think you're going?" one of them sneered at her.

"Nowhere…I just want to stretch my legs," she answered. She held her hands out in front of her to show that she wasn't going to do anything and slowly stood up. His eyes watched her the entire time as she made small circles around the cave. One of the other demons had moved to bar the entrance.

"That's enough. Sit back down," the first demon ordered. Phoebe made to sit down. At the last second she concentrated and levitated into the air, her legs were level with the demon's face.

"What the?" he called as she kicked him squarely in the jaw. She hadn't realized her kick would do so much damage. He went flying backwards into the cave wall.

"Anybody else?" she asked, balling her hands into fists. The demon guarding the entrance formed a fireball and sent it hurtling directly at her. Phoebe gave a small squeal and tried to hit the ground. The fireball grazed her arm. The unexpected pain caused her to lose focus and fall to the ground. The demon advanced on her.

"This will show the Triad that we are not just guns for hire," he spat, a second fireball forming in his hand. Phoebe cringed and closed her eyes but the pain never came. Instead there was a tortured cry and an explosion. She slowly opened her eyes to see Balthazar standing in the cave entrance. He moved towards her and bent down. He grabbed her by her good arm and dragged her to her feet.

"Go," he said gruffly, shoving her towards the entrance.

"What?" she stammered. Was he letting her go? After going to all the trouble to kidnap her?

"I said go…before the Triad gets here," he hissed. Phoebe took a few steps and and turned around.

"Why are you letting me go?" she asked softly. He looked around him and his appearance began to change. He shrunk significantly in height and his skin evened out in tone. In no time a familiar face stood before her.

"Cole?" she whispered.

"Just get out of here," he said. It almost sounded like he was begging her. She didn't have to be told another time. She took off at a run, careening down a corridor. She wasn't watching where she was going and collided with two bodies. She looked over to see her sisters.

"Prue! Piper!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around them, cringing when she remembered her injured arm.

"We thought you were…" Piper babbled.

"Let's get out of here before the Triad shows up," Prue said. Phoebe was about to tell her sisters what she'd just learned but she knew it would be easier to tell them once they were all back at the Manor.

"Any idea how we get out of here?" Piper asked, looking around frantically. Just then orbs appeared and deposited Leo.

"I thought you couldn't orb to the Underworld," Prue remarked.

"You're close enough to the surface that my signal reached," he answered, taking hold of them.

They arrived back at the Manor and Leo healed Phoebe's arm. As soon as Leo as out of the way, Victor pulled her into a hug.

"Thank God you're alright," he breathed.

"I'm ok, Daddy," she said, hugging him back nonetheless.

Just then the doorbell rang. Piper moved to answer it. She pulled the door open to see Andy standing on the front steps.

"Uh…" Andy began.

"Prue, it's for you," Piper shouted and headed for the kitchen. Prue thundered down the stairs.

"Andy…what are you-?" she started to say.

"I thought we were going to get that assignment done," he said.

"We are…I just…something came up. But I'm free now," she said.

"What's going on?" he asked, crossing the threshold.

"Nothing. Let's go," Prue answered and tried to drag him out of the house.

"No, Prue. Something is going on. What is it?" Andy persisted. Prue bit her lip. What was she supposed to do? She couldn't keep lying to Andy. Silently she motioned for him to take a seat in the living room. She caught Piper's gaze and nodded. Piper heaved a sigh but said nothing. This was Prue's issue, not hers.


	13. Rock and A Hard Place

_Rock and A Hard Place_

Prue and Andy stared at each other without saying a word for what felt like an eternity. She'd envisioned many times telling him that she and her sisters were witches. But now that it was staring her straight in the face, she had no idea what to do. All of the scenarios she'd reheard in her head couldn't help her now.

"So…what is it?" Andy asked, arms crossed over his chest.

"Um…have you ever noticed how…we don't really have a lot of people over?" she asked tentatively.

"Yeah…what's that got to do with anything?" he replied. Prue shifted slightly in the chair.

"A lot actually," she muttered.

In the sun room, Piper and Phoebe were spying on the conversation. Victor and Leo knew enough to keep away.

"She's really going to tell him?" Phoebe asked a hushed tone.

"Yeah…I can't believe it," Piper muttered.

"It's not like he's not here all the time," Phoebe retorted.

"She wanted to go tell Andy she couldn't study more than she wanted to find you " Piper hissed.

"She did not," Phoebe gasped. Piper just shook her head and put a finger to her lips so they could hear the exchange in the next room.

"Ok…care to elaborate?" he asked.

"I don't know how to tell you this but…what if I told you I was a little different than most girls," she began but he cut her off.

"You're not most girls, Prue. That's why I like you," Andy interrupted.

"Not exactly what I meant. My sisters and I…we're…special," Prue said, choosing her words carefully.

"I don't follow," Andy said.

"What would you say if I told you I had powers…I could move things with my mind?" she blurted.

"I…I don't know…" he answered with a shrug of his shoulders. Prue sighed loudly and looked around. She spotted the picture of Patty and the three girls on the mantle. They'd put it there years ago. She held out her hand and with a slight flick of her wrist the picture came to rest in her hand. She turned to look at Andy and he jumped back.

"How'd you do that?" he asked, trying to put distance between himself and his girlfriend.

"I'm a witch. I have powers," she said.

"She needs our help," Phoebe whispered from her position in the sun room. Piper sighed but they both headed into the living room.

"Witches aren't real," Andy exclaimed.

"Yes they are," Phoebe said.

"You're ten, of course you believe stuff like that," Andy accused. Phoebe glared at him and started to levitate in the air.

"How…" he started but stopped himself and looked at Piper.

"I freeze things and blow things up. I don't think you really want me to show you," she said dryly.

"Is it…something you can get rid of?" he asked.

"No," Prue answered.

"And we wouldn't want to either," Phoebe added.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because it's who we are. It's in our family…all the way back to the Salem witch trials," Piper answered.

"Before you ask, we don't wear pointy hats or ride broom sticks," Prue added.

"This is crazy," Andy mumbled.

"I know it's a lot to take in…believe me. We didn't know we were witches until five years ago…when Grams died," Prue said, sitting down next to him.

"I…I don't know what to say…to think," Andy sighed.

"Just…take your time," Prue murmured.

"I should go home…leave you alone…to do whatever you have to do," he muttered and stood up.

"No…wait. We don't have to do anything," Prue said, reaching to take his hand.

"Actually…the Triad is still trying to—" Phoebe began but Piper shushed her.

"Kill us," she finished quietly.

"I really should go," Andy said and walked out the front door. The door shut before Prue turned on Phoebe.

"Did you have to say that in front of him?" she spat.

"What? It's the truth. They are still trying to kill us," the ten-year-old retorted.

"Not to mention Balthazar," Piper added.

"That didn't go at all how I wanted. And now I probably lost my first boyfriend," she shouted, storming upstairs.

"Why is it our fault?" Phoebe asked of Piper. Piper just shrugged.

"I don't know. She's probably PMS'ing or something," Piper muttered. Leo poked his head out from the kitchen.

"Everything ok out here?" he asked.

"Andy's scared to death of us and Prue hates us…oh and demons are trying to kill us…yeah we're fine," Piper answered and headed upstairs as well.

"Sisters," Phoebe sighed and went in search of the TV remote. Leo returned to the kitchen to look at Victor.

"It didn't sound like it went too well," Victor stated.

"No. They are trying to balance too many emotions right now," Leo said.

"Is there anything you can do?" Victor questioned.

"I can try and talk to them," the whitelighter offered.

"I'll handle Prue," Victor said and headed upstairs. Leo started first with Phoebe.

"What are you watching?" he asked, sitting down on the couch next to her.

"Commercials," Phoebe answered. She flipped the channel and looked over at him.

"I'm ok, Leo," she said. He smiled at her.

"You know you can talk to me about anything," he said.

"I know," she answered and turned her attention back to the TV.

Upstairs, Victor knocked on Prue's door. He didn't get a response at first. He knocked again and this time footsteps sounded and the door was yanked open.

"What?" she spat, not caring who she might be offending.

"I wanted to talk," Victor said.

"I'm not really in the mood to talk," she said, starting to shut the door.

"Please. Prue I can help," he said. She rolled her eyes but let him in. He pulled the desk chair over to the edge of her bed and she sat across from him.

"I know how Andy's feeling," he started.

"Great, you're taking his side," she spat.

"No. I'm just telling you that I know he feels; confused, in disbelief," he rebutted.

"For a long time I didn't know your mom was a witch," he explained.

"But you accepted it," she mumbled.

"I didn't want to…not at first. It scared me. But your mom showed me what it could do…to help people," Victor continued.

"Just give him some time. He'll come around," he said, pulling her into a tight hug.

'Thanks Dad," she breathed against his shoulder.

"Come on. I think pizza is in order tonight," he said, standing up.

"I'm not a little kid anymore," she laughed, her mood lightened by her father's reassuring words.

"Come on," he said again and they headed downstairs. Leo had left Phoebe to her TV and gone to check on Piper. He knew there was a lot more festering under the surface than just Andy.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said before he could even open his mouth.

"It's better to talk about your feelings rather than keep them inside," he reminded her.

"It's just all too much. It's Christmas time. We're not supposed to be worrying about whether we're going to end up in the Underworld. We're supposed to be spending with family," she said, her back still to him.

"Is that all that's bothering you?" he asked, moving closer.

"And…Prue just…how could she think about Andy before Phoebe? She's our sister," Piper continued to rant.

"You're all growing up. Things change…people change," he advised gently, finally sitting next to her on the bed.

"I guess I thought it would be easier than it is," she murmured, looking up at him.

"Growing up is never easy," he agreed. She cracked a smile.

"Come on. I think your Dad is ordering pizza," he told her and together they headed down to join the rest of the family.

Far below them, the Triad was conversing in low tones amongst themselves. Cole waited outside the cave, pacing anxiously. He knew they would be furious. But he'd been working on his defense. It would be easy to blame it on the shape shifters. They were expendable. He just hoped the excuse would be well crafted enough for him to escape being vanquished. Finally, after an agonizing wait, he was allowed in.

"What went wrong/" the Triad in the middle demanded.

"The guards couldn't handle one lousy witch," he said, sounding as angry as he could.

"You said you were going to kill her," the one of the right remarked.

"I was on my way there when they let her go," he answered.

"Why do we not believe you, Balthazar?" the third demon asked.

"I guess I didn't pick strong enough guards. But they were useful in the capture of the witch," he offered.

"This sort of failure will not be tolerated!" the center demon howled. Cole backed up a few paces. He could tell he was in hot water now. They hadn't bought his bluff.

"We will do this ourselves," the demon on the right stated. Cole could feel his body starting to swear.

"And you will learn what true power can accomplish," he added.

"Now go!" the boomed in unison. Cole shimmered out, grateful that they hadn't vanquished him. He rematerialized across the street from the Manor. He was well hidden by the bushes in the yard across the street but he could still clearly see the Halliwells enjoying their pizza in the living room. He shook his head. They were just witches, nothing more.

Christmas Eve arrived quickly for the Halliwells. The girls were still bickering about if and when to summon Grams and Patty. They were currently setting up last minute decorations when Victor walked in.

"Girls. Enough arguing," he called sternly.

"I still think we should summon them for the whole day," Piper remarked.

"We don't want to scar Andy," Phoebe reminded her.

"If he even comes over," Prue grumbled darkly. Victor set the single bag of groceries down on the foyer table and walked into the room.

"You need to be patient…all of you," he said. Just then there was a sharp knock at the door. Victor left the girls to finish setting up and pulled open the front door.

"Hi Mr. Bennett," Andy said, his hands shoved in his pockets.

"Do you want to come in, Andy?" Victor asked but the boy shook his head. Victor nodded and stepped outside, pulling the door shut.

"You…you know about them right?" Andy asked.

"That they are witches? Yes. So was their mother," Victor answered.

"I just…it's all so crazy," the teen murmured.

"Believe me, I know how you feel. It still amazes me sometimes what my girls are capable of," he said.

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. They're powers are always growing. When they first got them. All Phoebe did was have premonitions…visions of the past and future. Now she can levitate," Victor began to explain.

"What about Prue?" Andy asked.

"Well she can move things with her mind. Now she can also astral project. Send her spirit out of her body…make it go somewhere else," he answered.

"And Piper?" Andy inquired.

"She can freeze and blow things up. Her powers haven't progressed as much as her sisters," Victor said. Andy rubbed his neck a little. He was still unsure of what to think.

"They use their gifts for good. They help people…protect the innocent," Victor added, noting Andy's unease.

"And Prue still has time to date?" Andy laughed a little. Victor nodded.

"It's getting harder with them growing up," Victor conceded.

"I know that Prue would like it if you stopped by tomorrow. There's some people we'd all like you to meet," Victor offered.

"Ok," Andy agreed. The two shook hands and Victor went back inside. He found the girls all crammed onto the couch. He looked first at Prue.

"I think Andy is going to come over tomorrow. We had a little heart to heart," he said. Prue couldn't hide the smile and sigh of relief.

"What about Mom and Grams?" Phoebe asked.

"I think they can stay as long as they want," Victor answered.


	14. Two Minds Are Better Than One

_Two Minds Are Better Than One_

Several months had passed. Neither the Triad nor Balthazar had made any more attempts on the girls. Andy was slowly getting used to magic. He'd begun to accept that it was just a part of who Prue and her sisters were. They were fairly patient in answering the multitude of questions he had. The air outside was still cool and the sun tended to hide behind clouds most of the time. Prue was staring out the window in her room as she got dressed.

"Come on girls. Get going!" Victor called up the stairs. Prue fretted over what shirt to wear for a minute longer before picking one. She pulled it on and checked her make up one last time. It wasn't every day that you got to spend Valentine's Day with that special someone, at least not in this family.

She opened her door and headed downstairs, a smile plastered on her face. Just as she sat down at the table, feet thundered on the stairs and Piper and Phoebe appeared, each holding the sleeve of one of Piper's shirts.

"What are you two arguing about?" Victor asked. He never was good at dealing with girl issues…like clothing.

"Phoebe, you can't wear it," Piper said, ignoring her father's question.

"It looks better on me," Phoebe retorted.

"Well it's my shirt. If you like it so much, go buy your own," Piper snapped, yanking the shirt out of Phoebe's hands. Phoebe glared at her older sister but sat down at the table, pulling the box of cereal towards her.

"Why are you so happy?" she asked of Prue.

"It's Valentine's Day," Prue answered simply.

"If that's how people act when they have a boyfriend on Valentine's Day, then I don't want one," she said, looking disgusted at her sister's extra-chipper mood. Prue just shrugged her sister's comment off. Piper returned a few minutes later wearing the much coveted shirt. She sat down and poured herself a bowl of cereal as well.

"Have a good day," Victor called as they rushed off to catch the bus. He wasn't entirely comfortable with Andy driving them all to school just yet.

Andy and Prue walked hand in hand down the hallway on the way to Prue's first class. They received a mixture of looks from their classmates. Back at her locker, Piper glanced sideways. She hadn't seen Cole in a few weeks. A part of her worried that he'd told someone their secret. Just as she turned around her wandering thoughts came crashing down. There standing before her was Cole. He looked a little frazzled and thin. They tried to pass each other until finally Piper stepped to the side. They didn't say a word. Piper didn't even glance back as she walked away. Prue and Andy stood together outside her classroom for a few minutes, whispering. Finally he caught a look from one of the hall monitors.

"I'll see you for lunch," he said and kissed her on the cheek before walking away. She sighed and turned to go through the door. She sat down and looked around. Something felt different. Her gaze landed on the desk at the front of the room. It was empty. The teacher was usually here by now. Just as the bell rang, a man with wavy brown hair walked in. He was dressed in a suit and tie.

"Good morning," he said, standing behind the desk.

"My name is Gabriel Statler and I will be your substitute teacher today," the man introduced himself. Prue sighed and took out her notebook. I f she thought the class was boring before, this guy made it at least three times as dull. When the bell rang, she jumped from her seat. She rushed into the hallway and nearly collided with a student teacher in one of the biology classes.

"Sorry," she muttered and hurried towards her next class. Lunch finally arrived and Prue was glad to spend some time with Andy. He was nowhere to be seen as she took a seat at a table near the corner.

"Hey," he called a few minutes later.

"Hi," she greeted, standing up to give him a quick kiss.

"Happy Valentine's Day," he said, holding out a wrapped box. She blushed and took it. As calmly as she could, she unwrapped the package.

"Chocolate? You shouldn't have," she said, beaming.

"How was your morning?" he asked, taking a bite of his sandwich. Prue took a deep breath. Just as she was about to open her mouth to speak, something caught her attention. She turned her head ever-so-slightly to see Gabriel standing in the doorway looking at her.

"Prue?" Andy called, drawing her back.

"Huh? Oh sorry. We had this really boring sub in first period. That's him," Prue answered, discreetly pointing to Gabriel.

"Nice suit," Andy snickered.

"He was so dull," Prue groaned as she took a bite of her own lunch. The rest of the afternoon passed relatively uneventfully. Prue found her last class to actually be interesting for a change. She was walking towards Piper's locker when she felt as if someone was watching her. She turned around to see Gabriel looking at her again. Prue didn't even notice when someone walked into her.

"Sorry," a familiar voice mumbled. Prue's gaze whipped around to see that Cole had walked into her.

"Watch it," she snapped. He looked between Gabriel and Prue and raised an eyebrow in the man's direction. Prue had continued to walk towards Piper.

"Ok something is seriously wrong with that kid," Piper whispered as they started to walk towards the front of the school.

"Yeah tell me about it," Prue muttered. They had almost reached the bottom of the stairs when Prue felt a hand on her shoulder. She stopped walking and slowly turned.

"Yeah?" she asked, looking Gabriel directly in the eyes.

"May I speak with you a minute?" he asked.

"I have to catch the bus," she said shrugging his hand off.

"It will just take a minute," he said, grabbing her wrist. He began to drag her away from Piper. Prue glared, squinting her eyes and making him trip. He stumbled and let go of her wrist. She sprinted back to Piper and pushed her past people and onto the bus.

"What was that?" the younger of the two demanded once the bus had taken off down the street.

"The sub from first period just grabbed me," Prue answered.

"He what? Why?" Piper asked.

"He said he had to talk to me. I told him no and he grabbed my arm. I had to trip him to get away," Prue answered in a hushed tone. Piper recognized the drop n volume to mean it was magic related.

"Maybe the Triad sent him?" Piper offered as the bus stopped to pick up the elementary school kids.

"I don't know," Prue answered just as Phoebe sat down.

"What are you whispering about?" she asked.

"We'll tell you when we get home," Piper said. Phoebe pouted but said nothing more. The bus finally pulled up in front of the Manor and they climbed out.

"I'll see you later," Prue called, waving to Andy. He bid them farewell and they parted ways at the sidewalk. They walked up the front steps and pushed the front door open.

"Dad, we're home," Prue called. The house was silent. It didn't feel right. She set her backpack down and motioned for her sisters to stay close. They moved first into the kitchen and then the sun room. When they rounded the corner into the living room, they were met with Victor, a large sword resting mere centimeters from his throat.

"Hello girls," Gabriel said, stepping into view.

"Get away from my Dad," Prue spat.

"I don't think so," the man snapped back, lunging at her with his sword. Piper managed to freeze him.

"Ok…who is he?" Phoebe asked. She just noticed that Victor was frozen. Piper looked too and waved her hand.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"You need to get out of here," Prue said, shoving him towards the door.

"And leave you three in the house with a sword wielding maniac?" he protested.

"I think it might be demonic," Prue shouted and slammed the door.

"Ok…think….uh…Book of Shadows," she said, motioning for her sisters to follow.

"Leo!" Piper called on their way up the stairs. She glanced over her shoulder to see Gabriel still frozen.

Leo appeared just as they reached the attic. Phoebe slammed the door shut and turned the key. Prue began telekinetically moving things to at least slow Gabriel's advances.

"Ok…um…guy with a sword trying to kill me. Ring any bells?" she asked of the whitelighter. Leo didn't answer at first. Instead he turned to the Book and began flipping through it. He finally stopped and turned the pedestal around so the girls could see.

"He creates wars?" Piper asked. Leo nodded.

"Why is he after us then?" Phoebe questioned.

"Because a long time ago, one of your ancestors, named Brianna managed to separate him from his sword. It's the only thing that stopped him," Leo answered.

"So why don't we summon her and she can do it again," Prue suggested. She waved her hand and five candles circles on the floor.

"Think we can use the usual to call a spirit spell?" Piper asked. Prue shrugged.

"Worth a try," she answered.

"Hear these words, hear my cry. Spirit from the other side. Come to me I summon thee, cross now the great divide," they chanted. Before their eyes a young woman appeared. She looked a lot like their mother.

"Blessed be," she greeted.

"Are you Brianna?" Prue asked. The woman nodded as she became corporeal.

"Great…we have a little problem that we need your help with," Prue said. Just then there was a lurch near the door.

"Gabriel….he's back…he's trying to kill us for you separating him from his sword," Phoebe added.

"Oh my. You must be…" she began but Piper cut her off.

"The Charmed Ones…yeah," she said. Just then the furniture protecting them from Gabriel went flying and the door flew off its hinges.

"Hello witch," he hissed, looking at Brianna.

"What do we do?" Phoebe whispered.

"Oh…Piper freeze him!" Prue squealed. Piper flicked her wrists and he stopped moving.

"We need to separate him from the sword," Brianna said calmly, looking at Prue.

"Why me? I can't…" she began.

"Yes you can. Just focus your powers. You have the strength inside of you. You're a Warren witch after all," Brianna assured her.

"Maybe a little help couldn't hurt?" Prue asked and Brianna smiled. They joined hands and together managed to get the sword out of Gabriel's hand. It hovered in front of them.

"I have an idea," Phoebe announced. All eyes were on her.

"What if you send it straight at him…like impale him," she suggested.

"It could vanquish him for good," Leo said from behind the pedestal.

Prue and Brianna held out their hands and at the moment that Gabriel unfroze, the pair sent the sword hurtling straight at him. His eyes widened in shock as the blade ran him through. The four witches watched as he was slowly absorbed by the sword.

"Ew," Phoebe groaned. Prue was about to reach out for the sword when it dematerialized.

"What just happened?" Piper asked.

"With no one to possess the sword, it disappeared into nothingness," Brianna answered, looking proud. Leo glanced out the stain glass windows to see Victor fighting with the front door.

"You might want to go let your Dad back in," he said. Prue nodded and they all traipsed downstairs. Prue unlocked the door and pulled it open.

"Threat averted. Sword wielding maniac has been vanquished," she told him as he crossed the threshold. He nodded, looking relieved until his eyes landed on Brianna.

"Who is this?" he asked.

"Oh…just one of our more powerful ancestors," Prue replied.

"Can you send her back to wherever she belongs please?" he asked.

"Fine…you never let us keep family around," Prue grumbled with a smile.

"Thanks for helping us," Phoebe said, giving Brianna a hug once they'd returned to the attic.

"Of course my beautiful girls. You have much to learn still…much power you have yet to tap into," she said, hugging Piper and Prue as well.

The three sisters waved goodbye as she disappeared. Prue slipped her arms around her sisters' shoulders.

"Happy Valentine's Day," she said. Piper and Phoebe just rolled their eyes.


	15. A Little Luck

_A Little Luck_

The end of February melted into March and the Halliwells were enjoying the fact that they had been demon-free since Gabriel's attack. The air was starting to warm up outside and so were the girls' spirits. Prue was more comfortable talking about magic around Andy and Piper had started to loosen up about her feelings for Leo. She knew she had to be patient. Phoebe acted as though nothing was wrong with her. She couldn't tell her sisters what she knew about Cole. Part of her thought they wouldn't believe her. Another part wanted to protect him. He'd let her go….he'd saved her.

"Hey, Earth to Phoebe," Prue called, snapping her fingers in front of her sisters face.

"What?" the younger of the two asked.

"Do you want to go to the movies with us?" she asked again, indicating herself, Piper and Andy.

"Will Dad let me go?" Phoebe muttered.

"Yeah. He said you can," Piper answered before Prue could open her mouth.

"Ok," she agreed.

She grabbed her jacket and followed them out of the house and towards Andy's car. She stared out the window as they passed by little shops on the strip. Her mind was elsewhere again. She kept trying to figure out why Cole let her go. She was drawn away from her thoughts when car doors started to open. She unbuckled her seatbelt followed her sisters into the theater.

"Are we getting snacks?" Andy asked.

"Popcorn," Phoebe voiced. Prue and Piper chuckled a little at her. She glared at them but Andy bought the popcorn anyways. They found four seats together midway back and sat down.

"You two aren't going to make the whole movie are you?" Piper hissed, stealing some of Phoebe's popcorn. Prue rolled her eyes and didn't respond.

The previews rolled shortly after they'd taken their seats. Halfway through the movie, Phoebe had finished her popcorn and was losing interest in the movie. She glanced over to see Prue leaning on Andy's shoulder. Piper was clutching her soda. Phoebe let out a sigh when out of the corner of her eye she caught a movement. It looked like a hand waving to her. She tried to ignore it but it kept persisting.

"I have to go to the bathroom," she hissed in Piper's ear.

"Can't you hold it?" the older of the two asked.

"No…I'll come right back," Phoebe replied and got up. She quickly walked out of the theater and looked around. Who had been waving at her. She glanced around a second time and still no one seemed to be looking at her. With a shrug she headed to the bathroom. A few minutes later she came out of the stalls and was washing her hands when she felt eyes watching her. She looked in the mirror and saw the top of a small green hat. She slowly turned around to see a very short man dressed all in green, leaning on a staff of some kind.

"This is the girl's room," she said, inching towards the paper towels.

"I know that lassie," the small man said. Phoebe just started to walk away but he caught up with her.

"Go away," she said, trying to walk faster.

"I need your help, Phoebe," he said, making her stop dead in her tracks.

"How do you know my name?" she asked nervously.

"Well you are a Charmed One aren't you?" he said, looking at her sternly.

"Y-yes," she stammered.

"Well then you've got to help me," he begged.

"What…are you?" she asked, looking around her to see if anyone was staring at her.

"What am I? Why I'm a leprechaun of course!" he cried. Phoebe just stared at him in confusion. They'd met their share of magical creatures in the last five years but never a leprechaun.

"You need to get your sisters," he urged.

Back in the theater, Prue looked over to see Phoebe's seat empty. She unwrapped her arm from Andy's and leaned over Piper's way.

"Where is Phoebe?" she whispered.

"She went to the bathroom," Piper answered.

"But it was a while ago," she added. Prue groaned and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Andy hissed.

"Have to go find Phoebe," Prue muttered. He and Piper stood as well and went in search for the youngest Halliwell. They walked out of the theater and nearly collided with Phoebe.

"We were just coming to look for you. To make sure you didn't fall in," Prue commented.

"We need to go home," Phoebe stated.

"Why? You're not sick are you?" Prue groaned.

"Someone needs our help," the ten-year-old answered.

"Who?" Piper asked. Phoebe pointed over her shoulder. Prue and Piper looked over her shoulder but didn't see anyone.

"No one is there," Piper stated. Phoebe looked and saw that the leprechaun had disappeared.

"He was right there," she muttered.

"Who?" Prue questioned.

"Can we just go home?" Phoebe begged. Prue looked at Andy and he nodded. The quartet headed out of the theater and climbed back into his car. Twenty minutes later they'd reached Prescott Street and pulled up in front of the Manor. Not two seconds after they'd walked through the door, Victor's voice rang out.

"Girls!" he shouted. He sounded mad. They rushed into the sun room to see the leprechaun sitting on the couch.

"I told you," Phoebe remarked.

"Why is there a little person in our house?" Victor asked.

"I told you, I need their help," the little man snapped.

"Where'd you go?" Phoebe asked.

"Well I came here looking for your sisters," he answered.

"Do you have a name?" Piper asked.

"Rowan," he answered.

"So…what do you need help with?" Prue questioned. Rowan stood up, leaning on his staff and walked up to her.

"You've got to stop him. He's trying to kill us," he stated matter-of-factly..

"Yeah…that's not vague at all," the oldest of the girls muttered.

"Leo!" Piper called. He appeared instantly and looked at the leprechaun.

"Rowan. Is everything alright?" Leo asked. Piper raised an eyebrow at the whitelighter. How did he know the leprechaun?

"A demon…he's after us…for our luck," Rowan answered, twisting his staff in his hands. The girls turned their gazes on Leo, asking the silent question 'what do we do?'

"I think we need to go upstairs and check the Book," he suggested. The girls looked back towards Rowan to find him gone.

"Now where did he go?" Phoebe muttered.

"Leprechauns can move faster than humans can. He's probably upstairs already," Leo replied as he ushered the girls towards the attic. They found Rowan sitting on the couch in the attic.

"So what exactly is after you?" Prue asked, grabbing the book.

"Azdren," Rowan whispered, as if saying too loudly would have some catastrophic effect.

"Who's Azdren?" Piper asked.

"He's been terrorizing our kind for months, stealing bits of luck where he can," Rowan explained.

"Why would he want luck?" Phoebe questioned.

"So he can gain power I suppose. What else would a demon want to have luck for?" Rowan snapped.

"To kill us," "Prue muttered darkly. She had been flipping through the book and had found the entry on Azdren.

"He's in the book?" Phoebe asked, sounding shocked.

"It says he's an upper level demon who tries to steal leprechaun luck to further his power-mongering aims," Prue read aloud. Phoebe wrinkled her nose. What the hell did that mean?

"He wants the luck to gain power…it doesn't sound like it matters whose power he takes," she explained.

"So you've got to stop him," Rowan insisted.

"He's an upper level demon. We don't really deal with many of those," Phoebe started to explain.

"You can't just sit and do nothing! You're the Charmed Ones. You're supposed to protect us," he railed.

"No one said we weren't going to help," Prue snapped, standing up.

"And if you haven't noticed. We're still kids. We shouldn't have to save the world," she continued.

"You don't have a choice," the leprechaun countered.

"Like hell we do," Prue hissed, sending a couple of candles and potion vials flying across the room.

"Ok…let's all calm down," Leo said, placing a hand on Prue's shoulder.

"Prue is right. They're just kids. They shouldn't have to deal with saving the world every day," Leo began.

"But as witches you have a duty to protect innocents and that includes magical creatures," he continued, looking to Rowan who nodded his head.

"So what do we do then?" Piper asked. Prue looked down at the book and scanned the page.

"It has a vanquishing spell and a weakening potion," she answered.

"But if he's got luck…the potion might not work," Phoebe said.

"Well we'll just have to hope that it does," Prue retorted. She set the book back on the pedestal and began to grab ingredients from the cabinet. Piper poured some water into the cauldron and Phoebe started to measure out the ingredients Prue had set on the table.

"Can they really save us?" Rowan hissed to Leo.

"You came to them for help. You're going to get it," Leo assured him.

Twenty minutes later, the girls had finished the potion. Prue siphoned it into three vials. She looked between her sisters and over at Rowan.

"Are we ready?" she asked.

"Be careful," Leo urged before orbing our.

"So how do we get him here?" Piper questioned. Rowan stood up and reached into his pocket.

"With a little luck," he replied. He blew on the gold dust and it swirled into the air before disappearing.

"Hope you know what you're doing," Rowan mumbled.

"Have a little faith," Prue hissed as Phoebe finished copying the summoning spell from the Book.

"Let's do this. I have a big paper for lit class to write," Prue sighed. Piper and Phoebe giggled at the comment. Just then there was a loud cracking sound and a large demon appeared. He was dressed in a shabby overcoat, his face, distorted by a large bulge on the left side of his face.

"Wow…guess all the luck into the world couldn't fix that face," Piper snickered.

"It's where he keeps the luck," Rowan replied, ducking behind the couch.

"Gross," Phoebe said, looking disgusted.

"Come out you little treasure trove," Azdren called.

"I don't think so," Prue said firmly.

"Witches. You think you can defeat me with all the luck I've collected," he scoffed.

"Throw the potions," Prue called and all three tossed the vials at him. They hit and made small explosions but he didn't look too worse for wear.

"Ok…now what?" Phoebe squeaked.

"The spell," Piper answered.

"We call to us now, another way we don't know how. Demon's plunder of magic's luck, may he no more run amok," they chanted. It didn't do anything.

"Stay back…I think I have an idea," Prue said, pushing her sisters out of the way. She concentrated, focusing on the luck tucked inside his cheek. With all the power she could must she sent it flying out of his nose, ears and mouth. He made a choking sound as all the luck flew out of him.

"Try the spell again!" Rowan called from his hiding place.

"We call to us now, another way we don't know how. Demon's plunder of magic's luck, may he no more run amok," the repeated. This time he began to burst into flames and disappear. He left a scorch mark on the floor.

"Oh…bless you," Rowan said, moving from behind the couch.

"You're welcome. Next time…don't be so rude," Prue muttered and headed for the stairs.

"Where are you going?" he called.

"Weren't you listening? I have a huge paper for class," she replied.

"Thank you again. I apologize for my…misjudgment," he said.

"You're forgiven," Phoebe said, giving him a hug. He tapped the staff on the ground and out of nowhere a rainbow appeared. He stepped into its path and tipped his hat to the girls as he disappeared.

"Now that is a cool way to travel," Phoebe laughed. Pipe joined in the laughter as they headed downstairs.


	16. Truth in Lying

_Truth in Lying_

Several weeks had passed since the events of St. Patrick's Day. No other magical creatures had come to seek their help and the girls were glad for that. They could get back to living their lives as normally as possible…well normally as three witches can.

"Come on, Dad. Please?" Prue begged, leaning on one of the kitchen chairs.

"Why do you need a car? You don't have your license," he replied.

"I'm not asking for a car…I'm asking to get my permit," she corrected him.

"I just don't see why you need to be driving. Can't you just astral project?" Victor asked. Prue's eyes widened to the size of half dollars.

"You can't be serious! That's totally personal gain!" she retorted.

"You yell at me if I call for the salt," she added.

"And besides, I could drive Piper and Phoebe to school…I could help out with shopping stuff," Prue pleaded.

"I'll think about it," he sighed. She smiled.

"Thanks," she said and headed upstairs. She nearly collided with Phoebe. The younger of the two looked startled but kept on walking down the stairs.

"You ok, Pheebs?" Prue asked, turning around and following her sibling.

"Yeah," Phoebe answered flatly.

"You don't sound ok," Prue commented, still trailing after Phoebe.

"Well I am ok. So just…drop it," Phoebe spat and stormed down the rest of the stairs. Prue stopped short and stared at her sister's retreating back. What was up with her? She just shook her head and reversed directions, stopping at the door to Phoebe and Piper's room.

"Piper, can I come in?" Prue called. Piper pulled open the door and let her sibling in.

"Do you know what's up with Phoebe?" Prue asked, sitting down on the edge of Piper's bed.

"Not really. She just seems really cranky. She's probably just got PMS," Piper answered.

"She hasn't acted like this before," Prue sighed. Piper closed her eyes for a minute.

"Now that I think about it, she's been getting really grumpy like this since St. Patrick's Day. Maybe the leprechaun pissed her off?" the fourteen-year-old offered.

"Maybe. But she seemed ok with it. It has to be something else," Prue muttered.

"So did you ask Dad about getting your permit?" Piper asked, blatantly changing the subject.

"Yeah…he said he'd think about it," Prue answered.

"He actually said 'can't you just astral project yourself'," Prue quoted.

"He did?" Piper gasped, falling into spurts of laughter. The sisters continued to laugh at the situation, despite the fact that it wasn't all that funny.

Downstairs, Phoebe had plopped onto the couch and was staring at the blank screen of the television. She wasn't in the mood to watch anything but she didn't want to be near her sisters. It was getting harder and harder to keep it a secret from them…that she knew who Cole really was. She wasn't sure why she couldn't tell them. She slowly closed her eyes, drawing her knees to her chest. She just needed to think…to be alone. However, just when she thought she'd gotten her wish, orbs appeared, depositing Leo on the other side of the coffee table.

"I want to be alone," Phoebe muttered before he could open his mouth.

"I know you've been upset lately," he said, disregarding her statement.

"I don't want to talk about it," Phoebe shot. Why couldn't they just leave her alone?

"You need to talk about it, Phoebe. Whatever you are keeping inside is affecting your powers. And with the Triad out there," Leo began to lecture.

"Will you promise not to tell anyone?" Phoebe asked, lowering her legs so she could sit up. Leo sat down next to her.

"As your whitelighter it's my j ob to be your guide and to listen to you," he assured her.

"Ok…" she murmured.

"Well…I might know something about Balthazar," she began.

"When he kidnapped me…" she explained.

"What did you find out?" Leo probed.

"He…he let me go," she admitted. Leo looked surprised. From what he knew of Balthazar's past, he was not usually so kind to his victims.

"He let you go?" he asked and she nodded.

"He…um…I don't think he's really a demon…" she rambled.

"Phoebe…just because he let you go…doesn't mean he's not a threat," Leo tried to explain.

"He…he turned into Cole," she finally whispered. Leo didn't know what to say. Balthazar was only a half-demon?

"Have you told your sisters?" he asked immediately and she shook her head.

"No. They wouldn't believe me," she answered.

"You need to tell them," he told her and stood up. She was on her feet in seconds.

"You said you wouldn't tell anyone," she said, panic rising in her voice.

"I'm not going to say anything. But you need to tell your sisters," he responded and disappeared in orbs. Just as she was about to head upstairs, Victor stuck his head around the corner.

"Everything ok in here?" he asked.

"No…" she trailed off and started to walk up the stairs.

"Do you want to talk about it honey?" he called.

"You can't help me," she answered and disappeared onto the first floor landing. She started to go towards her and Piper's room but stopped. Did she really have to tell her sisters now? They hadn't been attacked in a while by the Triad or Cole. She contented herself to head up to the attic to browse the Book.

The next day the girls got to school and Piper noticed that like every day for the last few weeks, Cole wasn't in class. It's not that she really cared but she did find it odd. That day at lunch she decided to pull Prue aside and mention it to her.

"Hey can we talk?" Piper asked as she spotted Prue in the lunch line.

"Can it wait?" Prue asked but Piper gave her the 'it's about magic' look and the elder of the two nodded. Couldn't magic just leave them alone for a day? They grabbed a table out of sight of the lunch monitors and huddled close together.

"What's up?" Prue asked.

"So…I know it's probably nothing but Cole hasn't been in school for the last few weeks," Piper whispered.

"Ok…why is that our problem?" Prue questioned.

"Well…he knows our secret. What if he told someone…or something," Piper answered.

"You mean like…the Triad?" Prue hissed.

"Maybe. But if they are really as powerful as Leo says they are then the probably already knew," the younger of the two stated.

"Do you think we should look into it?" Piper asked after a slight pause.

"I don't know. I mean we told him to stay away from Phoebe…and us. It would be weird just trying to find him now," Prue rambled.

"But what if he really was an innocent and we put him danger by pushing him away," Piper mumbled.

"Well…we can scry for him to when we get home. But we'd need to find something of his to scry with," Prue answered.

"I can see if I can get into his locker," Piper offered just as the bell rang.

"Meet at your locker at the end of the day then," Prue called as they parted ways.

The rest of the afternoon, Piper fidgeted in class. She didn't know why she was so anxious to search for Cole. Something about the whole situation just didn't make sense. At the elementary school, Phoebe was having similar problems. She couldn't focus on her classes either. She kept thinking about what Leo had said. She believed that he would keep his promise. But she also knew he had a point. The sooner she confessed what she'd been hiding to her sisters, the sooner they could do something about it.

"Hey Phoebe," one of the girls in her class called as they headed for the door at the end of the day.

"Oh…hi Michelle," Phoebe muttered, pulling the second strap of her backpack onto her shoulder.

"Do you want to come over this weekend? I'm having a sleepover," Michelle said.

"I'll have to ask my Dad. We might be doing a family thing," Phoebe answered. It was partly true. She never knew when there would be a demon attack.

"Ok. You have my phone number. Call me if you can come," she said and waved goodbye. Phoebe just nodded and walked slowly towards the bus. When she boarded she spotted Piper and Prue in the back. She maneuvered her way around some of the high school kids to reach them.

"Hey, Pheebs. How was school?" Piper asked, moving over so Phoebe could share her seat.

"Ok…I got invited to a sleepover," Phoebe answered.

"Cool. Are you going?" Prue asked.

"I don't know. I have to ask Dad," she replied. They fell into silence for thee duration of the ride home. As they walked up the steps, Piper and Prue shared a look.

"We need to talk to you," Prue told Phoebe as soon as the front door had shut.

"Did I do something?" Phoebe asked her siblings led her up to the attic.

"No. We just…Cole hasn't been in school for a while and we thought…we might have misjudged him. He might actually still be an innocent and we're going to try and scry for him," Prue explained as she grabbed the crystal and the map. Piper handed Prue the pen she'd pilfered from Cole's locker.

"You're not going to find him on there," Phoebe muttered just loud enough to be heard.

"What are you talking about?" Piper asked. It was now or never.

"I don't think he's here…like…up here," she said vaguely.

"You think he's in the Underworld?" Prue gasped and Phoebe nodded.

"So you think a demon really did get him?" Piper probed.

"Not exactly," the youngest said.

"Then what are you talking about?" Prue demanded.

"When I was in the Underworld…Balthazar…he let me go," Phoebe murmured.

"What?" her sisters gasped in unison.

"I think part of him might sort of be good," she rambled on. Prue gave her a look that said 'get to the point'.

"Cole…is Balthazar," Phoebe finally blurted. Her sisters stared at her in disbelief. Had they heard her right? Had she really just told them that one of the most powerful demons they'd ever come up against was the same boy that they'd let into the house, let near their baby sister?

"You're sure?" Piper finally asked, finding her voice.

"He changed right in front of me," Phoebe mumbled.

"So he really is evil," Prue grumbled.

"He let me go!" Phoebe retorted.

"He's still a threat to us," Piper said as gently as she could.

"But he hasn't attacked us since he kidnapped me," Phoebe protested.

"So what!" Prue shot.

"I can't believe you've known he's Balthazar all this time and you didn't tell us," she continued, starting to pace.

"I figured you wouldn't believe me," Phoebe shouted back.

"Ok…what does it matter? We know the truth now. It explains why he hasn't been in school," Piper said, intervening. She caught Prue's expression harden out of the corner of her eye.

"We could have been more prepared for when he attacked again," Prue muttered.

"I don't blame you Pheebs. I'd have been freaked out too," Piper said, placing a hand on Phoebe's shoulder.

"I don't know what to believe. Does he really want to hurt us?" Phoebe wondered aloud.

"I don't care if he looks human. He's a demon and that means he is the enemy," Prue said harshly and started to walk out of the room.

"I wish I could freeze her," Piper grumbled as she looked at Phoebe.

"I'll talk to her," Piper assured her younger sister before heading out of the attic.

Phoebe watched her sisters go and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. She hadn't expected it to go like that. She looked around her before opening her mouth.

"Leo," she called out softly. He appeared. The minute he caught sight of her he started towards. Instinctively she flung her arms around him and he held her.

"Prue hates me," she sniffled into his shirt. He said nothing, just comforted her.

"She doesn't hate you," he finally said, holding her out at arm's length. She looked into his eyes and for some reason she knew he was right. Down a floor Piper stormed into Prue's room without even bothering to knock.

"You didn't have to be so mean to her," Piper spat.

"She should have told us," Prue snapped back.

"She didn't. Get over it!" the middle sister yelled.

"You still treat her like she's five," Piper continued.

"We're dealing with really dangerous things, Piper. She knows that. She needs to realize that what affects her affects us all," Prue muttered.

"Just cut her some slack. She's just a kid," Piper said, trying to calm down as she walked out of the room, leaving Prue to stare after her.


	17. Brush With Magic

_Brush with Magic_

A few days had gone by and Prue had not apologized to Phoebe. Piper had tried to mediate but to no avail. Victor could feel the tension between his girls but didn't know whether he should step in or not. It was magic related, that much he knew. He figured Leo would handle it if it got out of hand. Presently they were all sitting around the dinner table.

"Prue can you please pass the butter," Victor asked. Prue pushed it across the table to him, not making eye contact.

"So how was your day?" he asked. None of them answered, all keeping their eyes on their own plates.

"Girls, I get that you're mad at each other but this silent treatment is getting ridiculous," he said.

"It's Prue's fault," Phoebe muttered.

"I wasn't the one lying for four months," Prue shot back.

"She wasn't lying. She was just scared," Piper interrupted.

"Girls, that's enough!" Victor boomed. All three girls looked at him in shock. They'd never seen him this angry over magic before.

"Prue, apologize to your sister. If you'd been in her position, how would you feel?" he ordered. Prue blinked for a minute before turning to face her baby sister.

"Sorry," she muttered. Phoebe just shook her head and got up. She knew Prue didn't really mean it as she took off up the stairs.

"Phoebe!" Piper called, chasing after her sibling, leaving Prue and Victor alone.

"You shouldn't be so hard on her. She's just a little girl," Victor scolded.

"She put us all in danger," Prue spat and headed out of the room as well.

Far below the Manor, a shimmer deposited Cole in a small cave. He heaved a sigh of relief when he found it was empty. He sunk to the ground and leaned back against one of the rough walls. He'd spent the last few days trying to stay off the Triad's radar. He knew they'd go after the Charmed Ones themselves, he had no doubt about that. As Cole sat there, a thought surfaced in his brain. Why had he really let Phoebe go? Sure he'd spent a considerable amount of time with her, tutoring her and getting her to trust him. But that was his human half's doing.

"Weak," he spat to the silent air. He'd succumb to weakness. He'd let his human half take over. That is why he let her go. Cole closed his eyes and rested his head in his hands. Why did he have to be so torn over this? They were witches…the enemy.

Not far from where he hid, the Triad convened in private. The three demons looked at each other. They knew that Cole had been hiding from them.

"Do we send bounty hunters after him?" one of the demons asked, arms crossed over his chest.

"No. He still can serve his purpose," the second interjected.

"He let the witch go. He is not strong enough to finish the task," the first rebutted.

"He knows his weakness and he will overcome it," the second shot back.

"We must forget about Balthazar for now. We have more important matters at hand," the third demon spat.

"Do tell," the other two said in unison.

"You can sense it…the witches are divided. Their powers are weakened and their bond as sisters is being put under pressure," the third Triad explained.

"We must take advantage of this rift," the first demon said.

"We must break them entirely. I believe I have a plan to accomplish this," the second Triad said triumphantly.

"Prue's boyfriend…the mortal. She would never forgive herself if something were to happen to him," he continued, receiving nods of understanding and agreement from the other two.

"Then let it be done," they agreed and all three disappeared.

Back in San Francisco, Prue was pacing around her room. She was still furious that Phoebe hadn't told the about Cole sooner. Despite her bad mood, her father's words kept echoing in her mind; 'if you'd been in her position, how would you feel?' She sunk to her bed and ran a hand through her hair. She knew she shouldn't be so mad about this. They knew now and they would be more prepared.

"Guess I should apologize," she muttered to herself. With a sigh, she stood up and went and knocked on Piper and Phoebe's door.

"Phoebe…I want to apologize," she called through the door.

"I mean it this time. I swear," Prue added. There were footsteps and Phoebe pulled the door open a few inches.

"No you don't," the ten-year-old murmured.

"I do, Pheebs. I just really overreacted," Prue said honestly. Phoebe was about to open the door further when the phone rang.

"Prue! It's for you," Victor called. Prue looked at Phoebe.

"I'll be right back " Prue mumbled and headed downstairs to grab the phone.

"Hello?" she said.

"Hey," Andy greeted from the other end.

"What's up?" he asked when Prue didn't say anything.

"Uh…not much. I was just going to apologize for being so mean to Phoebe," Prue answered.

"You're still fighting?" he asked. It seemed like such a 'duh' question that Prue didn't even answer it.

"I'll take that as a yes," Andy muttered.

"I'm sorry I'm not very talkative right now," Prue said, winding the phone cord around her finger.

"It's ok. I was actually wondering if you wanted to come over and watch a movie tonight. My parents are out at some party so we'd have the house to ourselves," he said.

"Uh…I'd like that a lot," Prue answered. Just then she heard something in the background on the other end of the line. It sounded like a scuffle and then there was a loud beeping noise.

"Andy?" Prue called. She got no answer, just more of the loud beeping noises.

"Andy!" she yelled. She tried to keep it together as she hung up the phone. Her body moved like a robot out the front door. It felt like everything was moving in slow motion. She didn't even bother telling anyone where she was going.

She walked rigidly up the sidewalk and up the steps to Andy's house. She pushed open the door and rushed inside. As soon as her feet crossed the threshold, time seemed to speed up again. She caught sight of some grotesque demon. It had its arms wrapped around Andy's throat. It gave her a nasty look before it shimmered out, Andy still in its clutches.

"No!" Prue cried out. It was a delayed reaction but she still rushed to the spot where Andy had just been. She should have done something…not just stand there. Prue tried to fight back tears as she stood up. She needed to find him. As quickly as she could, she sprinted up the street back to the Manor. She forgot about apologizing to Phoebe and just headed up to the attic. Piper heard the footsteps and stuck her head out of the door.

"Prue?" she called but got no response. She looked over at Phoebe. The ten-year-old looked sullen.

"I'll go see where she is," Piper offered and headed towards the stairs. She found Prue bent over the Book of Shadows.

"What are you doing? I thought you were going to apologize to Phoebe," Piper asked, startling Prue from her search.

"I…I can't," Prue mumbled, her hands still flipping through pages. Piper moved closer and put a hand on top of Prue's to keep it still.

"What's going on? You're acting really weird," the younger of the two said.

"Nothing," Prue spat, pulling her hand away. Piper took a step back and clenched her hands into fists. What she wouldn't give right now to be able to freeze her sister.

"You're lying," Piper spat right back. Her tone made Prue stop what she was doing.

"I…a demon kidnapped Andy," Prue admitted.

"What?" Piper rasped.

"I…I was talking to him on the phone and then…it went silent. I went over and I saw a demon…and he disappeared with Andy. I have to find him," Prue rambled.

"Let us help you. We're stronger together," Piper reminded her.

"No…this is my fight. I can handle it," Prue muttered but Piper shook her head.

"This is probably what the Triad wants," she grumbled and walked out of the attic. Prue continued to flip through the Book, not noticing her sister leave the room. She finally found the demon and ran a finger down the page. He was a low level demon. That would be an easy vanquish. There was even a summoning spell. She took a step back and steadied herself. It would be the first time she'd confronted a demon alone. She recited the spell and in a gust of dark smoke, the demon appeared. He didn't have Andy with him.

"How did I get here?" he demanded.

"I summoned you," Prue answered coolly.

"Where's my boyfriend?" she demanded. He just laughed at her. With a gust of wind he sent her flying backwards and into a chair. She let out a groan as she felt a trickle of blood slither down from her forehead. From the next floor down, Piper heard the crash and instinctively grabbed Phoebe by the arm.

"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked.

"Prue's in trouble," Piper answered just as they reached the attic. She spotted Prue still lying on the ground and the demon advancing on her.

"Prue!" Piper shouted. The demon turned at her cry and she managed to freeze him before he could move. She rushed to her sister's side and helped her up.

"I told you…we can help," Piper muttered. Prue just nodded her head. She saw Phoebe standing in the doorway.

"I really am sorry, Phoebe. I just…Andy got kidnapped by a demon and I sort of…panicked," Prue murmured. Without a word, Phoebe wrapped her arms around Prue's middle.

"I forgive you," the youngest Halliwell replied.

"Is that the demon who took Andy?" Piper asked once her sisters had pulled apart.

"Yeah…I was thinking we could torture him into telling us where Andy was," Prue answered. Piper flicked her hand and the demon's head unfroze.

"Unfreeze me witch!" he demanded.

"No. Not until you tell us where Andy is," Prue spat.

"You'll never find out," he taunted.

"Then I guess we'll just have to vanquish you then," Piper stated, her hands ready to commit the act.

"He's in the Underworld…" he muttered.

"We know that. Who sent you?" Prue shouted.

"The Triad. You will never defeat them!" he roared just as Piper got fed up and blew him up.

"We need to find something of Andy's to scry with," Phoebe suggested.

"I think I have one of his shirts in my room," Prue said and headed towards the stairs.

"What do we do…if it's really the Triad?" Phoebe asked once Prue was out of the room.

"Well…I think we need to worry about getting Andy out of there safely," Piper replied just as Prue reappeared.

"Let's hope this works," she sighed. Phoebe grabbed a scrying crystal and Piper picked up a map. Prue watched the crystal swing from the string until it finally landed. She looked at her sisters.

"Maybe Leo could orb us?" she voiced. Piper shrugged.

"Leo!" she called. He materialized before them.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"The Triad kidnapped Andy and we found him but we don't have any way to get to the Underworld…" Prue rambled.

"I can get you to the Underworld. I'm not sure how close I can get you to where he is," he said before taking them by the hands. They disappeared in orbs and reappeared in the Underworld. Prue looked around.

"Andy?" she called out softly. She heard a noise to her left and crept towards the sound. She poked her head around the corner to see three figures standing over Andy. He looked to be knocked out. Piper grabbed onto Prue's arm and pulled her out of view.

"What do we do?" Piper hissed.

"We have to distract them and get him out of here," Prue answered.

"That's not vague at all," the fourteen-year-old grumbled.

"Ok…here's the plan. I'll astral project and get Andy. Piper…you freeze them and Phoebe…try and levitate and knock them out," Prue said.

'They're really big. I don't think I can," Phoebe hissed.

"You can do it. Just focus," Prue said as she looked at Piper.

"Let's do this," she whispered. She closed her eyes and astral projected herself into the cave.

"We've been expecting you," one of the Triad.

"Why don't you pick on someone with powers," Prue shot.

"Hey! Over here!" Piper called, stepping into view. The Triad looked over at her and she flicked her wrists. They froze but she could tell it wasn't going to last long.

"Prue hurry up!" Piper shouted.

"Help me," Prue told her. Piper rushed over and grabbed one of Andy's arms. Together they managed to drag him out of sight before Prue's astral self got reabsorbed into her body.

"Let's get out of here before they unfreeze," Piper said, grabbing on to Leo. He orbed them back to the Manor and helped lay Andy down on the couch. He had a nasty looking gash on his forehead that Leo healed quickly. It took a while for Andy to come around. When he did, his eyes opened to see Prue leaning over him with a worried expression.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Uh…a demon kidnapped you. But you're safe now," Prue answered.

"A demon?" he asked and she nodded. It was then that he noticed Phoebe and Piper standing nearby.

"But you are safe now. We promise," Piper reiterated. Andy rubbed at his eyes but seemed to accept what they were telling him.

"Can we do a rain check on the movie?" he asked when he was finally able to stand up.

"Definitely," Prue said and gave him a kiss as he walked out the front door.


	18. Loyalties Lie

_Loyalties Lie_

Several weeks later, Andy had fully recovered from his demonic kidnapping. He and Prue were presently sitting on the front steps of the Manor sipping iced tea. He looked over at her and smiled.

"What are you smiling at?" she asked, catching the grin.

"Can you believe our junior year is almost over?" he answered. Prue laughed a little.

"Yeah…it seems kind of crazy doesn't it," she agreed.

"Next year we'll be seniors and then there's college," he rambled.

"Yeah…about that," Prue mumbled. Andy gave her a confused look.

"I don't know if I'm going to college," she admitted.

"Why not? You can get scholarships and stuff," he began.

"Money isn't the issue…magic is," she stated.

"Oh," he muttered.

"The whole Charmed Ones thing…I can't leave my sisters. It wouldn't be fair to them," she explained.

"I get it, Prue. Trust me," he said, leaning over and kissing her on the cheek.

Inside, Phoebe sat staring out the window in the attic. She watched Prue and Andy with only mild interest. She couldn't get a thought out of her head. Even though they all knew who Cole really was, why hadn't he tried to attack them again? It wasn't that she wanted him to attack. She just felt it was strange that he hadn't. She was so engrossed with staring out the window that she didn't hear the footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Pheebs, you ok?" Piper asked, joining her sister on the small couch.

"Huh?" Phoebe mumbled.

"Are you ok?" Piper repeated.

"Yeah," Phoebe answered with a shrug.

"Come on, tell me what's bugging you," the older of the two pressed.

"You'll think it's stupid," Phoebe muttered.

"No I won't," Piper countered.

"Ok…I've just been thinking…why hasn't Cole attacked us since he let me go," she sighed.

"That's not stupid, Pheebs. It's a really good thing to be thinking about," Piper answered.

"I think maybe he let me go because…he is part human," she rambled.

"Maybe. But the most important thing is that he let you go," Piper reassured her sister.

They fell into silence and turned their gaze downwards, watching Andy and Prue. Piper watched the way they moved around one another and couldn't help but think of Leo. They hadn't talked about 'them' in months and a part of her was glad for that. It meant she didn't have to worry about what the Elders might say. But another part of her worried about it. If they didn't talk about it, did that mean that Leo really wasn't interested?

Far below them, the Triad was pacing around in frustration. They hadn't expected the girls to cooperate in saving Andy. They'd been counting on their divided loyalties to one another. Their patience was growing extremely thin. If they were going to make a move it would have to be now.

"We must attack them now. Catch them off guard," one of them stated loudly.

"They will be expecting another attack," the second retorted.

"They will not be expecting an attic at the Manor. We will strike there," the first shot back.

"They are strongest at the Manor," the second argued.

"Enough! They may have bested us one time but they will not succeed again," the third roared.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" the first asked angrily.

"We will attack at the Manor…at night. They are less prepared then," the third answered. The other two looked annoyed but agreed to the plan. They knew the power the Charmed Ones possessed. They had been able to vanquish the Source after only having their powers for a short period of time.

Several caves away, Cole was leaning against the wall, trying to catch his breath. He'd almost been discovered by a group of swarm demons. He was concentrating on getting his heart rate down and didn't hear the approaching footsteps until the owner of the footsteps called out his name.

"Well, well Balthazar," Barbas sneered. Cole looked up immediately. It couldn't be real.

"Barbas?" he asked, trying to keep the unease out of his voice.

"In the flesh," the Demon of Fear answered, stepping into view.

"But…the Charmed Ones vanquished you five years ago," Cole babbled.

"You know as well as every other demon that you can't get rid of fear forever," Barbas snickered.

"What do you want then?" the younger demon demanded.

"You've been hiding…from the Triad. Is big, bad Balthazar scared they might find out…you let the little witch go?" he goaded.

"Shut up," Cole spat, taking on his demon form.

"But I'm right. You don't want to face them for what you did," Barbas continued to taunt. Balthazar's hands balled into fists. He couldn't risk using his powers. The Triad might sense his magic and find him.

"Just leave me, Barbas," Balthazar ordered gruffly.

"As you wish," Barbas laughed and disappeared. In anger, Balthazar slammed his fist into the nearby wall, causing the cave to shake violently and rubble to fall from the ceiling.

Afternoon shortly passed into evening and the Halliwells found themselves sitting around the TV eating pizza. Victor hadn't felt like cooking.

"I like when Dad doesn't feel like cooking," Phoebe said around a bite of pizza.

"You saying you don't like my cooking?" Victor asked, feigning a look of hurt.

"No…I'm saying I like pizza," she answered.

"Are you ready for your finals?" he asked, looking at Prue.

"Sort of," Prue muttered.

"You need to study," he said.

"I know, Dad. And I will…I've just been a little busy trying to keep my boyfriend getting kidnapped by crazy demons again," she grumbled.

"Just don't want to see you have to repeat junior year because of magic," he sighed.

"Me either," she agreed, cracking a small smile.

"Piper…you're quiet. Is something wrong?" Victor asked, drawing Piper out of her thoughts.

"No…just thinking," she answered.

"About?" he probed. Piper merely shrugged.

"Everything we've gone through lately. I don't know…sometimes it feels like just yesterday we got our powers," she muttered.

"I feel that way too," Prue said, wrapping an arm around her sibling's shoulder.

"Me too," Phoebe agreed.

"Thanks," Piper sighed, taking in the embrace of her sisters.

Shortly all of the pizza had been eaten and the boxes thrown away. Prue headed for her room and glared at the pile of school books on her desk. She had no interest in studying for her exams. But she knew she needed to study. Half-heartedly she picked up her math book and flipped through a few pages. The problems blurred on the page before and she shut the book. She was too tired for this. Piper and Phoebe had climbed into bed as well.

Down in the Underworld, the Triad was monitoring the activity of the Manor. They had to make sure everyone was asleep before they attacked.

"They are all asleep," one of them noted.

"The father is still awake," one of the others commented.

"We can dispose of him quickly," the first snapped. With a collective nod the three demons disappeared from view. They rematerialized in the foyer of the Manor. One of them glanced around the corner into the living room. Victor was seated, flipping through the paper. One of the Triad stepped into the room, causing Victor to look up. Before he could speak, the Triad sent a fireball directly at him. The force of the fireball sent Victor sprawling to the floor, a large wound in his shoulder and chest.

Upstairs, Phoebe was clutching her blankets tightly as she was pulled into a premonition in her sleep.

She saw the Triad appear from what looked like the basement. She saw one of them attack Victor. Next the image flashed to upstairs. She could hear herself screaming Prue's name.

Phoebe sat up straight in bed, covered in a cold sweat. She looked around and everything seemed to be in order. She didn't hear any footsteps on the stairs but she still had an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Slowly she climbed from bed and went over to Piper.

"Wake up," Phoebe hissed, shaking Piper's arm as hard as she could.

"Hmm," Piper mumbled.

"I just had a premonition," Phoebe said a little louder. That caught Piper's attention. Her eyes opened and she rolled over.

"What happened?" she asked through a yawn.

"The Triad got into the Manor and they attacked Dad," Phoebe answered. Piper shot out of bed.

"Well did you check the house?" Piper asked, heading for the door. The fact that Phoebe didn't answer was answer enough for her. She headed towards the master bedroom.

"He's not here," Piper said, her voice cracking.

"In my vision, he was in the living room," Phoebe offered feebly. Piper pushed passed her younger sister and thundered down the stairs. The Triad still stood in the foyer. They shared a look and just as the girls reached the bottom of the stairs, they vanished. Phoebe was the first to spot Victor.

"Daddy," she cried, falling to her knees at his side. Victor heard her voice but it seemed very far away. He opened his eyes but the world before him was blurry.

"Dad," Piper murmured, slumping to the floor on his other side.

"I'm ok," he coughed out, his chest aching as he tried to breath. Before either of them could say anything to their father, there was a loud crash above them. Phoebe felt ever nerve ending in her body prickle.

"Prue!" she called and headed for the stairs. Piper looked at her father and after her sister. She desperately wanted to stay by her father's side but if it really was the Triad, then her sisters were going to need her. She grabbed a pillow from the couch and propped Victor's head up.

"Just hold on, Dad. It will be ok," she said while trying to choke back tears. With that she headed up the stairs. She found her sisters hiding behind Prue's bed. Prue grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out of the way of an incoming fireball.

"What is going?" Prue hissed as the fireball left a huge scorch mark in her wall.

"They're trying to kill us," Phoebe answered flatly.

"You cannot defeat us," one of the Triad said

"We need to get to the Book," Prue hissed.

"Dad's hurt," Piper mumbled. She knew she should be focusing on the three very powerful demons staring them down but she couldn't get the image of Victor out of her head.

"I'm sure he's fine," Prue muttered, standing up. She concentrated and sent one of the demons stumbling backwards a few paces. He looked at her and laughed.

"Is that all you can do witch?" he spat.

"Piper, Phoebe help," Prue called. The younger two slowly stood up and joined their sister.

"Pathetic," the second demon sneered. He sent a shot of electricity at them. Prue managed to pull them to the ground just in time.

"On the count of three we run for the book," she hissed as quietly as she could.

"One…two…three," she called and they all ran out of Prue's room. They didn't make it very far before the Triad was hurling energy balls and fireballs at them. Phoebe caught a fireball to the shoulder and cringed as pain swept through her arm. Piper tripped on the stair but caught herself just in time to miss an incoming bolt of electricity. Prue turned around and sent the demons stumbling back again. She motioned for her sisters to hurry. They made it to the attic and slammed the door shut.

"Hurry…block it," Prue ordered, starting to drag things to put in front of it.

"That won't keep them out," Phoebe rasped.

"It's the best thing we've got," Prue snapped at her, only then noticing the painful looking burn on her shoulder.

"Is there a vanquishing spell?" Piper asked as they flipped the pages of the Book of Shadows feverishly.

"I…I don't know," Prue answered, not finding the page on the Triad. She knew it was in there. It couldn't just disappear. They kept flipping, not paying attention to the room around them. The Triad appeared and Phoebe looked up just in time to toss the book to the ground.

"Phoebe what are you-" Prue began but looked up to see the demons facing them. Piper opened her mouth to speak but it was too late. Everything went black as they were sent flying backwards.

"Leo," Piper rasped before she blacked out.


	19. Hold On Tight

_Hold On Tight_

The call was so faint he almost didn't hear it echoing through the ethos of magic. He had to strain to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. He listened closer and realized it was indeed a call.

"Leo," he could hear Piper calling out.

He disappeared and rematerialized in the attic. It looked like a war zone. Furniture was strewn all over the room and at first he didn't see the girls. He'd felt Piper's presence here. He moved to where the pedestal that held the Book of Shadows lay toppled over. It was there that he found the girls. They all lay motionless on the ground. Leo's heart began to race as he knelt down. He examined each girl's injuries and started with Phoebe. His hands glowed golden and the wound on her shoulder began to shrink and disappear. She coughed and her eyes slowly opened.

"Leo?" she croaked out.

"It's going to be ok," Leo whispered, trying to stay calm. He helped her sit up and she caught sight of Piper and Prue.

"They're not moving. Why aren't they moving?" Phoebe asked, panic rising in her voice.

"Where's your Dad?" Leo questioned, hoping to get her attention off of her sisters.

"Downstairs," she mumbled.

"Go downstairs and make sure he is ok," Leo instructed gently. Phoebe rose on shaking legs and slowly made her way downstairs. Once she was out of sight, Leo leaned over Piper and Prue, extending a hand out over each of them. His hands glowed brightly as their wounds too began to disappear. Despite the progress, his healing stopped working. He flexed his fingers and tried again but nothing worked. He couldn't lose these girls. He should have been there for them. Leo fell back on his heels and tried to keep it together.

"You can't let them die," he shouted at the ceiling. He wasn't expecting an answer but remarkably he received one. Blue and white lights appeared and deposited Sandra. She looked down at Leo.

"It's not their time," she whispered.

"I know," Leo rasped, looking down at the girls again. Sandra bent down to their level and took one of Leo's hands in her own. Together they finished healing the girls. Prue was the first to come around. She opened her eyes to see Leo bending over her.

"Where did you come from?" she asked, rubbing her head.

"Piper called for me," Leo answered, looking over at Piper. She should be waking up but she wasn't. Prue looked at Leo and a thought dawned on her.

"Phoebe said that Dad was hurt," Prue voiced. Leo looked to Sandra, pleading in his eyes.

"I'll tend to him," Sandra said and started to walk downstairs. Prue followed after the Elder. Leo bent down and picked Piper up gently. He slowly carried her downstairs and laid her on the couch in the sun room. He could hear the sounds of healing coming from the next room but all he could focus on was Piper.

"Come on, Piper. Wake up," he whispered, brushing a lock of dark brown hair from her face. He could hear Victor sputtering as he came too.

"Take it easy," Sandra said, placing a firm hand on his good shoulder.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"My name is Sandra. Leo called me," she answered.

"Where did the demons go?" he asked, looking over at Prue and Phoebe.

"We don't know," they admitted.

"Where's Piper?" Victor demanded, finally realizing his middle daughter was nowhere to be seen.

"She's in here," Leo replied as loudly as he could. Everyone moved into the sun room and crowded around Piper.

"Why isn't she waking up?" Phoebe asked, that edge of panic still evident in her tone.

"She's not…" Prue began to ask but stopped herself. She couldn't make herself complete the thought.

"No. She's not dead," Sandra answered.

"Her body is still recovering. She will wake up soon," she added.

"Will it be soon enough?" Prue asked darkly. She received several questioning looks.

"I'm guessing the Triad knew we'd be asleep. So they probably know we're alive…which means they will try to attack again," she said in one breath.

"But we need Piper….we're not strong enough just two of us," Phoebe whispered. Leo could tell how hard this was for Phoebe and reached out to squeeze her hand.

"I'm going to stay with her until she wakes up. I want you and Prue to check the Book of Shadows and try to find a way to vanquish the Triad. I think there might be some kind of vanquishing potion," Leo said, taking charge.

"But-" Phoebe began but Prue cut her off.

"Come on, Pheebs. Leo will let us know the minute she wakes up," Prue said, taking Phoebe by the hand. Leo looked over at Sandra.

"Thank you," he murmured. She gave him a smile and a nod before orbing away.

"I think you should help the girls," Victor said, pulling a chair closer to the couch.

"No. They can do this. I know they can," Leo answered perhaps more harshly than he'd intended.

"Leo…I know you care about Piper…" Victor began but Leo cut him off with a look.

"You're her father. I understand. But…if I'd been here sooner…it might not have happened," Leo said firmly. Victor took his tone to mean it was time to back off.

"I'll go see if I can help them, he murmured and made his way towards the stairs.

Down in the Underworld, the Triad was gathered in their private chambers. None of them spoke for a while. They were focusing on the Charmed One's energies. Finally they opened their eyes, all wearing a matching scowl.

"She was able to call for their whitelighter," one of them spat.

"But the middle sister, Piper, hasn't woken up. They are still weak," the second stated.

"They'd be expecting another attack," the first added.

"We will give them time…to regroup. They will seek us out and when they do we will destroy them," the third said with a sneer.

Within earshot, Cole was spying. He could hear every word they were saying and he grew angrier by the minute. He knew it was his human side getting the better of him but he still felt infuriated by the fact that they had almost succeeded in killing the Charmed Ones, in killing Phoebe. He knew he couldn't reveal himself to the sisters without risking being vanquished or at the very least severely injured. But he couldn't just them walk right into the Triad's trap. He closed his eyes to listen in to the end of the conversation.

"They will no doubt try to scry for our location," the first Triad murmured.

"They will need something to scry with," the second commented.

"Then let us give them something to scry with," the third laughed. Cole could hear him disappear. He reappeared in the Manor. He was just out of view in the living room. With a wave of his hand time came to a stand still. He moved upstairs and planted a piece of his robe on the floor near Prue's foot. With that he disappeared and time resumed.

Prue looked down and noticed the torn piece of cloth. She picked it up and examined it. Phoebe stopped writing down potions ingredients and took the cloth from Prue's hand.

"Is it from one of the demons?" she asked.

"I think so. We should be able to scry with it," Prue answered. Phoebe nodded and turned her attention back to the list of ingredients. Victor watched his girls work and couldn't help but think about Piper.

"Can I do something?" he asked. Prue looked down at the ingredients and pointed to several of the cabinets.

"Some of the stuff we need is in there," Prue answered. Phoebe grabbed three potion vials and set them on the table.

Back downstairs, Leo was sitting in the chair Victor had pulled over. His hand was gently wrapped around Piper's as he gazed down at her. His eyes started to close when he felt her hand move beneath his.

'Piper?" he whispered, falling to his knees. Her eyes slowly started to flutter open and she saw his face swim into view.

"You heard me," she breathed. He smiled at her.

'Of course I did," he answered.

"Where are Prue and Phoebe…and Dad?" she asked, trying to sit up too quickly.

"They're upstairs working on a vanquishing potion for the Triad," Leo replied.

"I think you should just take it easy for a few minutes," he added when she clutched her head. She nodded and lay back down.

"I barely remember what happened. Phoebe…woke me up and then…we were in the attic and then…blackness," she mumbled.

"It's ok. You're all ok," Leo promised.

"I want to help," Piper stated and slowly sat up. Leo helped her to her feet and followed her up the stairs. She cleared her throat when they reached the attic door.

"Piper!" Phoebe called and rushed over to her sister, pulling her into a firm hug.

"You're having all the fun without me," Piper laughed and made her way over to where Prue was simmering the potion.

"Welcome back," Prue said quietly.

"Thanks. Can I do anything?" Piper asked.

"You can scry for the Triad," the older of the two answered, handing over the crystal and piece of fabric. Piper took the items and sat down, holding the crystal over the map. She watched it swing in wide arcs but never landing. Finally, after what felt like ages the crystal dropped.

"I got them!" she announced.

"The potion is ready," Prue announced, holding up the three vials. Victor surveyed his daughters and pulled them into a hug.

"Please be careful," he breathed.

"We will," Piper promised. They all looked to Leo and he nodded, extending his hands.

"Keep my girls safe," Victor told the young whitelighter.

"I'll do my best," Leo answered and they disappeared in blue and white.

They reappeared in the Underworld. Prue looked around and kept her sisters close. They had to be ready for anything. They slowly inched their way along the corridor, listening for any sounds that would alert them to the Triad's presence. Just around the corner, the Triad waited for the girls to appear. They were ready to end this battle and claim the victory in the name of Evil.

"I think I hear something," Piper whispered. Prue distributed the potion vials to her siblings as they approached.

"Wait…they're probably expecting us. We need to distract them," Prue hissed.

"Somehow I don't think they'll fall for our trick like when we rescued Andy," Piper commented.

"Ok so just…throw your potion and hope you hit something?" Phoebe asked. Prue wasn't entirely keen on the idea but it was a plan of some kind. They rounded the corner and met the Triad head on.

"You're not going escape this time," the center Triad said coldly.

"Yes we will. Because good always beats evil," Piper replied, holding the potion vial tightly in her hand.

"We will see," the Triad on the left said, sending an energy ball straight at Phoebe.

Prue managed to deflect it into a nearby wall. She tossed her potion at the demon and he started to explode in agonizing pain. Piper tossed her potion as well and hit the demon directly across from her. The last Triad began to back away, realizing that these girls were more than they'd anticipated. No one had seen Cole shimmer into the cave. He was hidden from view by a small alcove in the wall. He watched the last Triad trying to escape. He needed to time this just right. He watched Phoebe's hand as it slowly moved through the air and launched the potion at the retreating demon. Cole formed a fireball and launched it at the Triad just as the potion hit. The demon cried out in agony and suffered the same fate as his brethren.

"We did it," Piper said, sounding shocked. It couldn't have been that easy. The Source had at least been harder than this.

"You think they're really gone?" Prue asked. Piper shrugged. Phoebe was staring at the alcove where Cole was hiding. He could feel her eyes boring holes into his head. He stuck his arm out briefly so she could catch a flash of color before he shimmered out.

"Phoebe?" Piper called, tapping the younger girl on the arm.

"Huh?" Phoebe asked, shaking herself back to reality.

"You ok?" Prue asked.

"I'm fine. Just…kind of a shock," Phoebe muttered. Her sisters nodded in agreement and Leo appeared to take them home.


	20. Time Flies

_Time Flies_

The school year had come to an end and the girls were on their way home for summer vacation. Prue had managed to study for her finals and had gotten decent grades. Andy pulled his car to a stop between their houses and Piper and Phoebe climbed out. Prue leaned against Andy's arm and smiled.

"I'm glad it's summer," she murmured. Andy smiled back at her.

"Me too. No school for three months," Andy said with a laugh.

"So…do you think things will calm down on the demon front?" he asked after a brief pause.

"I don't know. I hope so. I mean the Triad is gone…I don't think there are any other big upper level demon out there," she rambled.

"Good. We should go to the movies tomorrow," Andy suggested as they climbed out and walked up to the front door of the Manor.

"Ok. We'll have to check the paper," Prue replied before kissing him on the lips. They parted ways and Prue walked into the Manor. She tossed her backpack on the stairs and headed for the kitchen. She found Victor sitting at the table.

"Hey Dad," she said, pulling open the fridge.

"Hi honey. Glad school's done?" he asked.

"Yeah. I can relax for the summer," Prue answered, getting a glass and pouring herself some lemonade.

"You going to get a job?" he asked as she joined him.

"I don't know. I guess so," she mumbled into her drink.

"You are going to have to get a job sooner or later," Victor commented.

"Can I think about it tomorrow or something? I just want to relax," Prue asked. Victor nodded his head and she stood up. She headed upstairs and ran into Piper coming o ut of the bathroom.

"Hey," Prue said.

"Hi," Piper muttered, leaning against the wall.

"What's up?" Prue asked but Piper didn't answer. She just shook her head.

"Come on, Piper. Just spill," Prue said, dragging her sister by the arm into her room.

"I just kind of keep thinking about what happened with the Triad…and Leo," Piper sighed.

"You like him…we all know it," Prue said with an eye roll.

"He didn't leave your side until you woke up," she added. That made Piper smile a little.

"I'm sure you'll work it out," Prue said.

"Thanks," Piper murmured, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Maybe things would be ok. She would let some time go by before she talked to Leo about their feelings again though. She didn't want to upset the Elders.

"Dad wants me to get a job," Prue sighed, falling backwards on her bed.

"Didn't he want you to get one last summer?" Piper asked with a laugh.

"Yeah…but I think I need to. To save up some money…for college," Prue stated.

"College? I thought you weren't going to college," Piper commented.

"I don't know…I mean it would be a good thing…and I can go somewhere close by," Prue answered.

"I think you should do it," Piper said. Just then there was a knock on the door and Phoebe poked her head in.

"Hey Pheebs, come on in," Prue said, waving her sister in. Phoebe pushed open the door and climbed onto the bed.

"What's going on?" Phoebe asked.

"We're just talking," Piper answered.

"Prue's going to get a job," she added.

"And Piper is going to spend time with Leo," Prue said with a wink.

"I said maybe," Piper shot back.

"Don't tell the Elders," Phoebe giggled.

"Do you have any plans for the summer?" Piper asked.

"I don't know…maybe practice my levitation," she said with a shrug.

"That's probably a smart idea…hone our powers," Prue agreed.

"You think we're going to need to practice?" Piper asked.

"I think so…I mean…there has to be some other evil out there," Prue answered.

"You're right. We need to be ready for whatever comes after us next," Piper said with a nod.

Down in the Underworld, Cole was lying on his back on the floor of a small cave. He'd managed to keep out of the radar of the top demons. He couldn't let it be known that he'd helped vanquish the Triad. He closed his eyes and breathed a sigh. He thought back to all that happened. He thought about meeting the Charmed Ones and getting close to Phoebe He knew he would have to hide for a while.

"This is such a mess," he groaned to himself, his voice echoed in the cave.

Elsewhere in the Underworld, demons had started to gather, having heard the news that Triad had been vanquished.

"What happens now?" a scabber demon called.

"Who will take over?" another called.

"We will!" a group of swarm demons roared. Voices rang out from various other demonic factions claiming their stake in reorganizing the Underworld.

"We need to deal with the Charmed Ones," one demons' voice rang out above the other.

"That would be suicide," several others roared. The cave reverberated with echoes until they finally died down; groups shimmering out in anger.

The summer passed by. Prue had gotten a job as a waitress in a small burger restaurant and started to save up money for college. Piper had been doing her best not to avoid Leo. He did his best to be in close range for the girls in case demons attacked. He knew that the Underworld would be reorganizing.

"Guys!" Phoebe called a few days before school started. Piper and Prue rushed into the living room.

"What is it/" Piper asked.

"I don't know…I just felt really weird," Phoebe answered.

"Weir how?" Prue probed.

"Like…I could have sworn I felt…really excited…about school," Phoebe answered. Her sister stared at her in confusion.

"And I kind of felt anxious too," she added.

"Well you're going to a new school. That's not weird," Prue stated.

"But…it kind of felt…like I was feeling it from your guys perspectives," Phoebe muttered. Piper raised an eyebrow.

"Leo!" Piper called. He appeared almost instantly.

"Phoebe says she's feeling weird…feeling things…that we feel," Piper explained quickly. Leo thought about it for a minute.

"Well…you could be coming into a new power," he offered.

"A new power?" Phoebe asked, sounding excited.

"It's called empathy. You can feel other people's emotions," he clarified.

"Cool," she smirked.

"It sounds annoying. I mean…why would you want to feel other people's emotions?" Piper asked.

"It's not a power meant for everyone. But, if you are meant to have it, you will be able to control it with time," he answered.

"You sure?" she asked and he nodded.

"Guess we have a new secret weapon the demons don't know about," she said with a smile.


End file.
